Collision
by xoxoKelly
Summary: Kakashi never met someone that shared the same kind of pain as him before. Until now. Kakashi/OC - Rated T for action scenes and teenage hormones.
1. Pre Arrangements Suck

_Saying this once and once only; I don't own anything expect my characters and my ideas._

* * *

Chapter One: Pre-Arrangements Suck

* * *

KIA.

Killed in action.

Those three words were embedded into Uchiha Ayame's head since she was thirteen years old. That's how old she had been when her older brother, Obito, was killed during a dangerous mission. She was seventeen now, and still thought of her older brother every single day of her life. They were close, rather like best friends instead of brother and sister. Sometimes she felt that he was the only one who understood her, but now that was gone. That feeling of safeness and brotherly protection was gone also. And regardless of the smiling faces surrounding her, she never felt so alone.

"Ayame, earth to Ayame," a soft voice was heard. The young girl snapped out of her private thoughts and noticed her best friend's hand in her face, attempting to grab her attention. She hadn't realized that she was lost in her own world until she was forced out of it.

"Huh?" She shot her head up as dark bangs fell over her face and her onyx eyes pierced through. Yamanaka Nori stood a few short feet away from her, with her long blonde hair pinned back and her bright sea green eyes glowing under the sunlight. Ayame looked towards her former teammate with an apologetic face, this wasn't the first time she dozed off in daydreams.

"Are we still going to Ichiraku Ramen?" Voiced another person, and the kunoichi looked toward the side and noticed her other former teammate. Hyuuga Hitoshi stood up proudly at 6 feet tall, and had shaggy black hair that covered half his hitai-ate* and ears. His large signature gray eyes pleaded at his friend, "I'm starving."

"You're always starving!" Nori nearly yelled, and slapped Hitoshi on the arm playfully. He smiled at the sudden bodily contact, and reached over to tickle her ribs daringly. As he succeeded in doing so, Nori blushed a rosy pink that looked flawless against her skin, and laughed loudly.

Since they had been standing in the middle of one of Konoha's outdoor markets, people had started to look at the weird girl who was laughing uncontrollably. Ayame shook her head and raised an eyebrow at the scene in front of her. How was it that her two other teammates were acting so... so flirtatious around each other? When had they started acting this way toward each other?

From the last time she could remember, the three of them were just _friends_, teammates even. When had Hitoshi even started liking girls? Weren't they just little preteen gits just the other day? But they weren't. They were growing up, and it seemed like everyone was in a race to beat Ayame to the finish line before she even started. She must have missed that memo.

"Um, I think I'm just going to head home, actually," the dark haired girl spoke, not really wanting to end the _moment_ between her two friends, no matter how awkward it was. Nori and Hitoshi seemed oblivious to Ayame's sudden reaction and real reason for wanting to leave.

Nori shot her head up, "What? Why?" She pouted a little, and Hitoshi stopped tickling her. Yet, he was behind her, and his arms rested playfully around her waist. They both looked at Ayame with sad faces, wondering why she was backing out all of a sudden.

"I just remembered that my mom wanted me home early today," Ayame lied, and smiled widely to show that she was okay, or at least pretending to be okay, "You guys go ahead without me, I'll see you tomorrow."

With one last wave of good bye, Ayame watched her two best friends continue down the busy path, and she could have sworn their hands touched as they walked side by side. She almost gagged at the thought of Hitoshi and Nori holding hands. It seemed like just yesterday they were friends, strictly friends. And Ayame couldn't understand how feelings like this could just happen overnight.

Sighing, the young ninja took the long way home, instead of the usual shortcut that consisted of walking through the village. Her feet moved simultaneously after one another through the green clearing mostly used for training exercises. Considering it was kind of late, Ayame wasn't too surprised to find the area empty.

Thankful, she honestly didn't feel like seeing any other people at the moment. Noticing the unusual spark between her too former teammates had left her a little upset. Of course she wanted both of them to be happy- it just made her feel left out. Shaking the thoughts out of her head, she knew she was being too negative and harsh towards the two people that have always been there for her.

Her feet stopped, almost automatically in the middle of the arched bridge that stood above of a clear river. She leaned against the cold, metal railing, peering into the lucid water and noticed her reflection on the other side. Her long dark hair was surprisingly neat, excluding the few fly away hairs that stood up on the top of her head. Her black eyes seemed dark, which contradicted against her usual bright personality.

She blinked at the flowing mirror beneath her, longing to reach forward. Water. There was just something about the clear liquid that amazed her. It's purity, it's strength, it's abilities...

Her visual evaluation was cut short when the sound of multiple voices were heard behind her. Ayame turned around, with a raised eyebrow and noticed a group of six people walking past the clearing, in the distance. They didn't notice her standing on the curved bridge, and she was partially thankful for that.

The first person she noticed was Anko, whom was also the loudest and most obnoxious of the group. Her hair was tied up in it's usual spiked up position and she had a wide smile plastered on her round face. Ayame watched as she was play fighting with Iruka, which seemed more like an affectionate beat down. The young Uchiha chuckled at the sight of them, admiring Iruka's braveness for being with such a strong woman.

Her eyes then traveled to the next couple that walked behind them. Asuma and Kurenai, who have yet to confirm their love for each other. Apparently everyone else saw the connection between them, they were just too shy to admit. From what Ayame could see, Asuma was busy complimenting Kurenai on her hair, while she blushed a couple different shades that matched the redness of her eyes.

Shaking her head, her gazed moved onto the two last people in the group. She almost chuckled at the sight of Gai, who was dressed in a ridiculous green, polyester jump suit. His bowl cut hairstyle added on the humor to his whole appearance. Then Ayama spotted the person that Gai was arguing so deeply with.

Hatake Kakashi.

He was tall, slim and muscularly built, well as far as she could tell from the way his sleeves hugged his biceps. Her eyes studied the rest of his body, noticing his customary navy blue mask and the hitai-ate that covered his left eye. Her stare stopped where his head band was. She gulped, remembering the many rumors she heard about him.

According to the gossip that flew around the village a few years ago, Kakashi _took_ one of Obito's sharingan eyes, and had it implanted into his own eye socket. Personally, Ayame never witnessed the eye for herself, but a part of her knew it was true. Kakashi and Obito always fought, and it would be a no brainier that he would _steal_ something like that.

Ayame frowned at the sight of the young _Copy_ Ninja. Apparently everyone made a big deal about him because he was the Fourth Hokage's student and his father was supposedly this "White Fang" guy. He had also joined ANBU when he was thirteen- something that was almost impossible to do. The only other ninja in Konoha to do that would probably had been his deceased father.

She shook her head, feeling silly, worrying about someone that probably didn't even know she existed. But as Ayame's gaze was still glue to the gray haired figure, she was surprised to see him look up at her direction.

As instinctively, she turned around with a warm blush traveling from her neck to her cheeks. The visual image of his one, visible lazy eye plagued her mind. _He looked up at her... Did he see her? Did he know who she was?_ Biting her bottom lip nervously, Ayame retreated her attention to the water underneath the bridge.

* * *

The Uchiha compound seemed livelier than ever as Ayame dragged her feet through it's metal gates. The sun had gone down a bit by the time she made it passed the training grounds and over to the complex in which she lived in. Many houses, all resembling the same structure, were lined up neatly in rows and columns as concrete roads separated them.

As she walked down the familiar path that led up to her house, she noticed all the little children that ran around playing games and having fun. They all wore similar navy blue clothes with the same Uchiha symbol sported on the back. Ayame even wore a dark blue qipao** that reached just a few inches above her knees, and supported the red and white symbol behind her. Underneath the short dress, she wore black tights that fell just below her knees.

Eventually, after a long, hard day, the female teenage ninja finally made it to her doorstep. Wanting nothing more than to relax in a soothing bath and to retreat to her bedroom and knock out on her more than comfortable bed, Ayame entered her small house.

"Where have you been? I was expecting you hours ago!" A voice called out, and the young ninja turned her head into the kitchen to see her mother. A rather short, round woman dressed neatly in her fanciest clothes. She stood up from the kitchen table where her father was also seated, "Please go to your room and put on the outfit I've laid out on your bed for you."

Raising a single eyebrow at her mother, Ayame wondered what her parents were up to. Why did they expect her home so early? Even though she recited that lie to her two friends, she didn't actually think it was true. And why did her mom lay out an outfit for her? She was tired, and wanted to get to bed already. Was she missing something? Was it someones birthday? Yet, she chose not to question her and skipped up the wooden stairs to her bedroom.

With her balcony door opened, Ayame's bedroom had a certain chilly feeling inside. It was a small but rather nice room that reflected against her personality perfectly. She had photos plastered on one wall and a bed leaning against the other. Stacks of old dusty books and unopened scrolls scattered her desk. And on her neatly made bed was a light pink kimono, with little white flowers, laid out nicely.

She raised another eyebrow before getting dressed.

* * *

As she walked down the steps, with the pink kimono on, and her dark haired tied up in a long ribbon, Ayame heard unusual voices in her own house. By the time she reached the bottom step, she noticed that her parents weren't alone, but accompanied by four other people at the kitchen table.

Uchiha Fugaku, his wife Mikoto, and their sons Itachi and Sasuke.

"Ayame, have a seat here," her mother patted on an extra cushion on the floor, nearest to her, and beside Itachi. She knelt down, hearing the click in her knees as her legs bended behind her. Her heart thumped fast, wondering why everyone was suddenly gathered here.

Fugaku was the first to speak, "Ayame, it is to my understanding that you'll turn eighteen during the summer, is that correct?" His hard gaze seeped through her eyes, and she shuddered against the table. Her voice not really working anymore, she nodded instead, still trying to get her point across. Fugaku cleared his throat, "Your parents and I have come to the agreement that you and Itachi will be married by the end of the summer."

"What?" Now she found her voice.

She felt her mother's soft hand covering her own, "Ayame, please, don't make a fuss about this."

But she didn't dare look into the face of her mother, instead her eyes traveled to the person who sat across from her; her father. "Daddy?" The pet-name she hadn't used in almost five years rang throughout the silent kitchen. He closed his eyes, and that's when Ayame saw the sadness he displayed, and that's when she understood why she had to do this.

They were poor. Obito was dead, and her father hadn't gone on a mission in over three years. All her mother had been doing all her life was cook, clean and care for the family. And Ayame... she was still a chuunin. They didn't get paid much when it came to missions.

But Fugaku and his family... they were... they were rich. He was the leader of the police squad, which was a very important job for the community. And Itachi was an ANBU member, one of the highest ranks in Konoha. There was no doubt in Ayame's mind that they were swimming in money from head to toe.

"Okay," she regretted, but spoke anyway, "Okay."

Little Sasuke laughed and looked up at Ayame with great big eyes, "Does this mean your going to be my new sister?"

* * *

_The ages are kind of jumbled up for this story, in order for it to make sense. Kakashi is around twenty, Ayame is seventeen, Itachi is eighteen, and Naruto and the gang are around eight years old. I understand the weirdness, but I promise it'll all work out for the sake of the story._

_*Hitai-ate – headband  
**Qipao – Asian outfit _


	2. Insecure

Insecure

* * *

Clad in her clan's famous navy blue attire, Ayame's chest heaved up and down with every cold breath she took. Running relaxed her, and as she exhaled, an puff of white air was released from her mouth. She loved to run, but running in the cool spring weather made it so much better.

The sun hadn't come out yet, and the training grounds were still empty, with the exception of chirping birds and squirrels. Just as Ayame turned the corner of the local hot springs, she noticed a familiar figure crouched down. He had long gray, spiked hair and binoculars covering half of his face. The other end of the binoculars were plastered between a crack in the stone wall. Ayame could only presume that on the other side of the wall was filled with women bathing, _privately_.

Shaking her head in sheer disappointment at someone she should be looking up to, Ayame yelled at the top of her lungs, "JIRAIYA-SENSEI!" The name that was shouted aloud echoed throughout the small clearing. The women inside the bathing area was heard, fussing around, wondering why someone was yelling so early in the morning.

The old Sannin flew back in shock, he clutched his heart through his shirt for support, "Ayame? You scared the heck out of me!" His voice wasn't angry or upset, just surprised. He was shocked to see someone that he hadn't seen in a long time. Or maybe he was shocked to see how much his former student had grown.

Ayame smiled widely and scratched the back of her head, "Sorry, Jiraiya-sensei!" As she watched her old teacher recuperate from the surprise attack, memories started flowing into her mind. Nori and Ayame used to play pranks on Jiraiya all the time, and Hitoshi used to sit back and call them stupid.

Jiraiya grinned back and got up from the floor, "It's okay, I forgive my favorite student," he tucked the binoculars into the side of his coat, "How 'bout we take a walk, and you can update me on what's been going on?"

"Sure," Ayame agreed, and lead the path further into the forest. The trees were high and spacious and the sunlight was starting to peek through. Birds were chirping loudly and happily while the squirrels ran up the sides of trees, often holding nuts and berries. The two continued to walk, surrounded by the beauty of nature.

"So, how are Nori and Hitoshi? I miss my old team, the new genin are a pain... so immature," Jiraiya admitted, crossing his arms over his chest. He used to complain about the same thing almost five years ago, before Ayame's team grew up.

The dark haired kunoichi laughed at his last statement, "Everyone's fine, Hitoshi's already a jounin and now he's trying out for ANBU." Honestly, she didn't really agree with Hitoshi wanting to join the ANBU squad. The Special Assassination and Tactical Squad (ANBU) is nothing more than a group of killers. That's what they are trained and designed for. Killing.

"Really?" The great sannin asked, "I always knew he would do great things... he's a very skilled Hyuuga. He tries really hard to be strong, and I'm pretty sure he'll get the job too," he complimented, then turned to face Ayame, "So then are you and Nori still Chuunin?"

She looked down in embarrassment and nodded her head slowly, "Nori's being trained by her older brother for the Jounin exams." The feeling of rage and jealousy filled Ayame from head to toe. Nori was her best friend, and a good friend at that, but she had always been jealous of her best friend's beauty, long blond hair and outgoing personality towards guys. And one thing she will always envy her about is her _family._ Nori had the perfect "nice" parents, who owned a successful little flower shop in Konoha, an older brother who was a successful jounin and a cute little sister named Ino.

Ayame wish she had a family like that.

"And what about you?" Jiraiya asked, "Aren't you participating in the exams?" The Toad Sage knew that Nori and Ayame did everything together. They always ate together, trained together, went on missions together, and he figured that they were entering the exams together.

But she surprised him by shaking her head, "No, I'm not ready to enter. I haven't been training lately... I don't have anyone to help me, to teach me," they stopped walking and reached the huge pond that laid in the center of the training grounds, "I'm seventeen and I haven't even activated my sharingan yet... my parents are even doubting that I have it."

Ayame knelt down at the shore of the pond, and her hand danced between the waves of the flowing water. She noticed her reflection again, and it looked the same as yesterday. Pale skin, dark hair and even darker eyes. She looked soulless, almost like a zombie.

"I think I know someone with some extra time on their hands to train you, someone that could help you out before the exam." His voice was little excited, like if he had been thinking about this for a long time. The long red marks on his face curved as he smiled at the teenage girl.

Head shooting up in shock, Ayame released her hand from the water and stood up, "Really Jiraiya-sensei? You would get someone to train me?" Her voice was almost as ecstatic as she felt on the inside. For once, she felt special, she felt _needed_. _Wanted, _even.

"Of course, you're my favorite student, I'd do anything to help you," He grinned.

Compared to Nori and Hitoshi, she always felt like the weakest link. Hitoshi had his byakugan and Nori had her mind-body switch technique that never failed. All Ayame had was the blood of the Uchiha clan running through her veins, yet no sharingan. But there was something in that grin that made Ayame feel like he would going out of his way for her new trainer. And at that moment, she felt a spark of hope, true hope. Something that she hadn't felt for a very long time.

"Arigato, Jiraiya-sensei, I won't let you down!"

* * *

Ayame woke up the next morning with a different attitude, the kind of attitude she wished she had every morning. She had the sudden feeling like she wanted to accomplish something, to make a difference in her life today. And the young Uchiha girl rose from her bed, she remembered Jiraiya saying that her new trainer would meet her on the bridge at six am.

Excited, she hurried to get dressed. Throwing on her usual dark blue clothing, and signature navy sandals. Next was getting her weapon pouch ready with numerous sharp objects. Kunais and shuriken were the majority of the objects in the small pouch that hung loosely at her hip. In the end, she decided to tie her hair up into a long dark ponytail that flowed down the center of her small back.

She was ready.

It had been a while since she trained, like really trained for a purpose. Her recent missions had been almost embarrassing, mostly all C-ranked or lower. She helped paint a building here, helped deliver some papers there... missions that were better left for younger genin.

It was 5:55 when she left her small house, half-bitten apple in hand. She walked out of the compound with her hitai-ate tied around her petite waist proudly. There was a certain kind of atmosphere that surrounded her today. An atmosphere of anticipation and hope. And for a moment, it almost felt like Obito was there with her, walking side by side with her as she exited the complex.

An abrupt wind blew her ponytail from side to side as stray hairs tickled the side of her pale face. Ayame looked to the side of her, almost sensing the presence of someone else. But as she looked there was no one else there, no one but the wind, who kept her company.

The dark haired girl kept her feet moving, nibbling on the red apple every so often. She reached the bridge placed in the middle of the clearing in no more than six or seven minutes. The village was still empty, everyone was still sleeping.

The only sound that could be heard, was the noise her shoes made as it clanked against the floor of the arched structure that served as a connection between two lands. She above the water again, and as she inhaled, the familiar smell of clean water enveloped her senses. She loved it. And as she looked down at her reflection, like she always did, she noticed that it looked almost identical as those other times. Pale face, dark hair, and even darker eyes. But there was one difference. A smile.

As Ayame studied her watery image over and over again, pointing out little flaws here and there, she almost didn't notice the time that was ticking away. She was too engrossed with the imperfections she noticed about herself, like the few fly away hairs that stood up, the slight curves of her upper lip, the little arch of her eyebrows...

She waited alone for her new trainer to show up.

Twenty minutes passed.

Half and hour.

Her stomach was starting to grumble a little, and a part of her wished she ate more than just an apple. Her mother was forever begging her to stay home for breakfast, to eat a real meal. And as her stomach began to whine louder, she wished that for once she listened to her.

Forty five minutes passed.

An hour.

An hour and a half.

Ayame sighed deeply, leaving her mirrored reflection in the water, as her shoes clanked on the floor of the bridge once again. The little ounce of hope, the little spark of faith she had left was shattered. Gone. Ruined. The small amount of strength she had left within her small muscles was destroyed. Washed-up. Just when she thought she was special enough to have a trainer all to her self... someone that would pay attention to just _her._

She knew that her luck wasn't that good. She knew that since she was a little girl. Since the first time she skinned her knee across the pavement of her house, or the first time she failed a test at the academy, or when her parents arranged a totally unnecessary marriage for her. If she didn't have good luck all her life, why did she think she would have it now? At least when she was younger she had an older brother to pick her up when she fell down, someone who tended to her skinned knees and broken heart.

Her foot left the stone flooring of the bridge and transitioned onto the squishy grass-dirt like mixture. Hope turned into disappointment. Faith turned into dissatisfaction. And her courage to want to keep on going was completely and utterly crushed. Why did she even get her hopes up in the first place to be let down?

"Going somewhere, Ayame?"

The young Uchiha's eyes widened as her back faced the recognizably familiar voice. Oh God, she hoped it wasn't who she _knew _it was. _Please, let this be some kind of mistake, some kind of misunderstanding_, she begged inside. There was no way in hell that _he_ would agree to be my new jounin trainer.

_He_ was a killer, a thief, a liar, and a whole bunch of other things Ayame couldn't put into words. _He_ was a licensed assassin who served as an ANBU member for many years. But most of all, Ayame couldn't stand _him_ because _he_ was said to have stolen Obito's sharingan eye the same day he died.

After what seemed like an eternity, the kunoichi turned around slowly and regrettably. On her small pale face was a pout that made her look way beyond disappointed as she caught sight of the man in front of her. _He_ was wearing _his_ usual attire which consisted of the hunter green ninja vest and mask that covered half _his_ face.

_He_ was Hatake Kakashi.


	3. Exceptional

Exceptional

* * *

A week has passed...

...almost a week...

...well actually only two days but to Ayame, it felt like a whole week!

The tension and awkwardness between the young Uchiha kunoichi and the White Fang's son became too high to deal with. Ayame had her own reasons for not liking him, which she often listed in her head. Yet Kakashi couldn't understand_ why_ she hated him so much. He couldn't remember _ever _doing anything to make her feel that way.

No, she never said it to his face, that she hated him. He just basically inferred it from her actions towards him. Well, more like the lack of actions toward him. She frequently ignored him and avoided his gaze at all costs. He knew she was Obito's baby sister, he knew that since the day he met her.

And Ayame wasn't the type of person who got angered or frustrated easily. She loved having a smile on her face and laugh coming out of her mouth. She was a prankster, a jokster and a trouble maker. Yet the Uchiha was calm, she didn't get into drama filled problems with other girls, and didn't _cause_ fights.

Ayame huffed and puffed as she reached a certain tree at the clearing, her head tilted up, "Are you going to do anything else, besides read that _inappropriate_ novel?" Stitting on a high branch was Kakashi with, indeed, a little orange book laid out on his lap.

He was so lost between the tattered nudity filled pages that he didn't bother looking up, "Am I supposed to be doing anything else?" His voice had a little hint of sarcasm in it, and Ayame hated that. His sarcasm toward her felt like a dumb joke that nobody laughed at.

She crossed her arms over her chest, with a kunai still in hand. For the past hour and a half he told her to practice her aim, while he read his precious little book high in the trees. "If you don't want to train me, then leave, your wasting my time," The girl muttered between gritted teeth.

This time Kakashi looked up, and stuffed his favorite tiny book into his weapon pouch. He was obviously interested in whatever Ayame just said to him, so interested that he put his book away. He jumped down from the tree, and landed firmly on the ground with his two feet. He cleared his throat, "I've been trying to train you," he started, "But you've been ignoring me. So what am I supposed to do? This is the most you've ever talked to me."

"I'm _sorry_ if I'm a little judgmental," Ayame spoke with a little bit of irony lacing her words, "How am I supposed to act towards you after what happened to O-Obito?" The girl found it difficult to muster out her deceased brother's name. Now that she thought about it, she wondered if she ever said it out loud after her did. She was sure she hadn't.

Kakashi's one visible eye drooped, oblivious to Ayame, talking about Obito was also a sore subject for him, "What are you talking about? What does Obito have to do with this?" He tried to think of the different possibilities as to why his dead friend was connected to her training. He couldn't think of any.

The Uchiha grunted in frustration and stomped one of her feet on the ground, "Don't lie, don't pretend that you don't know! And most of all... don't pretend like it didn't happen! Because I know... I know all about it." Her eyes were kept on the dirt ground below her, because the eye contact between them was just too intense for her.

The Sharingan user held his arms out in frustration, "What did I do? What am I lying about?" He was totally clueless to what Ayame was talking about. He was so lost about why she was accusing him of things he never remembered doing. Nonetheless, he stood in front of her, arms stretched out, waiting for a reasonable answer.

"The sharingan," she spoke icily, "You _took_ it from him. How could you?" Her coal colored eyes narrowed, "He was my brother, your teammate. How could you do something... something so selfish?" She tilted her head to the side, and finally looked up to see his face. She wished that his dark mask wasn't there so she could see the expression he wore.

But he sighed, Kakashi sighed, and covered his already cloaked face with his large hands. He looked back up, eventually, after rubbing the frustration from his visible eye. "I never _took_ Obito's eye forcefully, or for my own selfish reasons. I never hurt him, or stole anything from him. During the battle, I lost my own eye," Kakashi spoke, while simultaneously pulling up the hitai-ate from his face, "And your brother's last dying wish was for Rin to implant one of his eyes into my eye socket," The headband was pulled all the up and Ayame could now see the long scar that ran down from his forehead to his cheek.

"What?" she breathed, and for a moment she couldn't feel the ground beneath her. She became light headed and dizzy, and longed to sit down and catch her breath. Too many things were happening at the same time, and she couldn't handle it. Why was she starting to feel sorry for Kakashi, as she studied his facial scar, didn't she just hate him?

He opened his left eye to reveal the famous, blood red color, "Obito was a great friend, and was also a very brave person. It was too bad that I realized that the day he died. I wish we could have both put our stubbornness aside a long time ago, because maybe both our lives could have been a lot better. He was the closest thing to a friend I ever had," he continued, "I don't know if you believe me or not, but I really hope you do. Because I would like to make this work between us."

Ayame released the arms that were crossed over her chest, "Obito wouldn't want us to fight," she said simply, "I-I believe you."

"Thank you."

"I believe you because I think it's what Obito would have wanted me to do. And as much as you two used to argue, at the end of the day, he had only nice things to say about you. He envied your power, but saw you as a brother to him. And I think he would have wanted us to be friends, because of that."

The Copy Ninja nodded his head, and visions of the funny kid he once called a teammate flooded through his mind. He watched Ayame, wondering if she was thinking about him too, "After that day, I saw him as a brother too. As the brother I never realized I had. And because you're his sister, I want to help you. And I'm going to help you enter the jounin exams. And I'm going to help you until you pass. Because _he_ would have wanted me to."

"Thank you."

Now that the tension and awkwardness was lifted from the atmosphere, Kakashi's one visible eye arched as he smiled beneath his mask, "Will you have lunch with me?" he asked, "My treat."

* * *

Ichiraku Ramen was as far as the two ninja could go before their grumbling stomachs exploded with hunger. And Ayame's mouth watered as the smell of her favorite Ramen wafted out of the bar and into her nose. As if she were thinking with her stomach rather than her brain, her feet were dragged in.

"Teuchi-san, I'll have a pork ramen please!" Ayame excalimed, sitting on one of the round stools. The Uchiha girl had been to Ichiraku plenty of times, and was on a first name basis with the owner, and his daughter, who happened to have the same name as her. Kakashi took the seat nearest to hers, muttering that he'll be having the same.

Ayame turned to face Kakashi, "Are you actually going to eat?" she asked, with a raised eyebrow. Her eyes traveled to his mask, and even though she never thought about it before, she now wondered what his face looked like. And she wondered if he was going to expose it for a bowl of ramen.

Kakashi smirked, "Of course I'm going to eat, why do you think I ordered it?"

Just as Ayame was going to retort some kind of smart comment, there was a sudden loud bang from behind. Before I knew it, someone had grabbed my arm and started placing kisses traveling from my palm to my elbow. I snatched my arm away and noticed Gai's head bent before me.

"Oh, Beautiful Ayame, I had no idea you were eating here alone," he spoke, placing a hand over his heart. He was totally oblivious to the gagging look on her face, and the fact the Kakashi was sitting right next to her.

The Copy Ninja shook his head, and glared at Gai from behind, "Actually, she's not alone. I'm right here."

The man known as Konoha's Green Beast narrowed his eyes and turned around to face his arch nemesis. He had known that Kakashi was there the whole time, he just decided to pretend like he wasn't. "I want to challenge you, Kakashi! And the winner gets to walk Ayame home tonight," he turned back around to face Ayame with googly looking eyes and she could have sworn she saw a wink too.

Kakashi sighed and lowered his head in defeat, "Fine Gai, I challenge you in a... ramen eating contest," he suggested, just as the bowls of hot noodles were served in front of them.

Gai took the seat on the other side of Ayame, "I accept your challenge! And not only will I get to walk sweet Ayame home, I'll also win her love!" he exclaimed and ordered himself a bowl of ramen also. He gave everyone his super thumbs up "cool guy" pose and winked with a huge smile on his face. The dark haired Uchiha almost gagged at his enthusiasm towards her.

Once all three bowls were on the bar counter, Kakashi turned to Ayame, "Count us off?"

She nodded, having felt quite invisible the whole time, regardless of the attention from Gai, "Ready?" Both men nodded, "Three... two... one... GO!" she yelled, and at that moment, Gai began to chow down the burning noodles. And by the time she turned her head to see Kakashi, his bowl was already empty, and his mask was back on his face.

Still in shock, as they both looked toward Gai, he was still slurping the hot broth with his bowl still full. He slammed the dish on the table in frustration and pointed at Kakashi, "So you've won this time! Before bed I shall do three hundred laps around Konoha as my punishment!"

"That's... great Gai," Kakashi muttered, shaking his head once again.

And as they continued to argue playfully, Ayame had the chance to enjoy her own ramen. She looked between them, as she consumed the long noodles and watched as Gai attempted to challenge Kakashi to a race, or to a staring contest. She laughed a couple times, wondering why she never hung out with the rival ninja before. And as she finished the last of the soup, Kakashi was still denying every obstacle Gai threw at him.

It was dark when they came out of the ramen bar and onto one of Konoha's busiest streets. The moon was starting to rise, and the sky was the prettiest shade of purple. Gai stood still, with his head levitated at the sky, "Kakashi really should walk you home, Ayame." His voice had a hint of seriousness in it, and the smile faded from his usual joyful face.

Ruffling her eyebrows the Uchiha crossed her arms over her chest, "I don't need a baby sitter, I'm a ninja, remember? I can walk myself home." She turned around, about to merge with the other civilians. But something grabbed onto her elbow, and she looked over her shoulder to see Kakashi holding onto her.

"Gai's right, I should walk you home," the Copy Ninja agreed, and released the girl's arm. She looked up at him with huge, dark eyes. They searched his one visible one for some kind explanation. Some kind of reasoning as to why she needed someone to walk her home. Still not understanding, she nodded her head anyway, allowing Kakashi to walk side by side with her.

"I'll see you guys later," Gai stated, waving a hand way above his head.

The two bid him goodbye, and started their journey to the Uchiha compound. Things were quiet at first, and the streets were starting to get emptier and emptier as the sky got darker. Kids were running home from school and adult were coming home from work.

"Can I ask you something?" Kakashi pondered, looking straight ahead at the road in front of them. From the corner of his eye, he noticed Ayame's nod, and resumed to what he was saying, "I know it's none of my business, but I couldn't help but think it was just another rumor. Is it true that your marrying Uchiha Itachi?"

The kunoichi choked on her saliva, not expecting those words to come out of his mouth, "So you heard about that? ...Yes I have to marry him, I don't really have any other choice," she admitted, looking down at her pale hands, suddenly interested in the wrinkles of her knuckles.

"C'mon, you always have a choice."

"Why do you care?"

"I don't," he established, "I just think that everyone has their own choice and decision when it comes to something like that. Marriage is a big part of your life, why would you want to be with such a jerk?"

"Just because I have to marry him doesn't mean that I like him," she snapped, and Kakashi raised his single eyebrow, "Sometimes your actions are sacrifices for people that you love, that you care about. And sometimes you would do anything to make those people happy, because that's the only thing you can offer them. Happiness."

"And what about you?" He asked, "Don't you want to be happy?" and when Ayame didn't answer, he continued, "I'm sorry for asking, it was none of my business. You just looked like the type of girl who made decisions for themselves, not based on what other people want."

The kunoichi stood quiet as they confronted the compound's gates, and Kakashi didn't pressure her into saying anything. What was she supposed to say anyway? She knew he was right. He was _so_ right. She was always the type of girl who made choices for herself. She was always the little rebel against her parents and every other adult. So what made her want to listen to them now?

"I have to go, thanks for walking with me," she spoke lowly, and forced a smile upon her face. He returned it, and nodded before disappearing into the night.

* * *

The famous Copy Ninja ran from rooftop to rooftop, until he reached the familiar balcony that he had visited earlier that day. He landed smoothly on his two feet, and instantly recognized the familiar chakra from inside the room. He waited outside for a few minutes, not wanting to barge in rudely. But in no more than five seconds, a deep voice was calling him in.

Kakashi walked into the rather large and very familiar office, "Hello, Hokage-sama, I was just reporting that Uchiha Ayame has returned home safely for the night." His hands were stuffed behind his back in respect as he bowed down to his elder. He noticed that the grand desk was cluttered with it's usual documents and papers.

The old man took a long draft from his smoking pipe, and replied, "Thank you, Kakashi. I will need you to watch over her for the next couple weeks, at least until the jounin exams are over." He watched the expression of the one visible eye change dramatically on the Sharingan user's face.

The tall man ruffled his eyebrows together, "May I ask why?"

"Just for precautionary measures, you understand, don't you?" The third Hokage explained, then added, "I'll need you to be with her for the majority of the afternoons, and every night make sure she gets home okay. If you have to follow her, do so, but just don't make it obvious. Things will get harder if she finds out you've been keeping tabs on her."

"Yes, Hokage-sama," Kakashi spoke, bowing down once again to the old wrinkled man behind the wooden desk.


	4. Not So Sweet Kisses

Chapter Four: Not So Sweet Kisses

* * *

Laying face up on her bed, Ayame held an opened book high above her head. She was engaged within the tattered pages of an old novel that was passed on from her grandmother. It was a romance, about a young blind maiden who fell in love with a notorious ninja known for his assasinations. She didn't know who he was, but fell in love with him because of his personality and respect towards her. And he fell in love with her because she didn't judge him on his past, but what was in the inside.

There were more books that scattered around her on the floor, some new, some old. Sometimes she liked to take a break from it all and just sink into a good novel. It may not look like it, but Ayame was the type of girl that liked to get lost in _someone else's _love story.

_Knock Knock Knock..._

The book that was being held up, fell at a rapid pace as the sound of someone knocking on Ayame's door alarmed her. Groaning in pain, she held the bridge of her nose, where the book had hit her. She knew was eventually going to start bleeding anytime soon, but hopped off the bed anyway. Letting out an aggravated sigh, she swung her bedroom door open aggressive.

"What do you want?" She growled, opening the door fully, then looking up, "Oh, it's _you_," noticing the person, "What do you want?" Her dark eyes were glued onto a certain male ninja in front of her. It was the last person she expected to see in front of her bedroom door.

His eyes were darker than hers and looked just as stressed as always. But today, there was something different about him, and Ayame knew it. She could tell by the sudden gleam in his pupil and curve of his perfectly shaped smirk.

"What do you want," She repeated, "Itachi?"

"I want to talk to you," He answered simply, entering the small bedroom before Ayame had the chance to invite him in. She closed the door behind herself angrily, she was still upset that she was interrupted during the best part of her book. A part of her hoped that she remembered the page number, since the book now laid closed on her bed.

The kunoichi grimaced at the back of Itachi's head, and crossed her arms over her small body. He walked around sharply, leaving dented footprints into her cream colored carpet. She barred her teeth at him, while he was still turned around. Who invited him here?

Ayame mentally cursed her mother, who was probably on the other side of the door, with her ear pressed on the thin wood. She knew her mother was _dying _for something to finally happen between the two of them. Did she expect grandkids before they were even married? There was no doubt about it.

Walking further into the room, Ayame watched as Itachi passed by the messy pile of books on the floor. He glanced down at them for a split second, but returned his gaze to the goofy pictures that adorned her wall. Some of the photos were of her and her family, including Obito. And others were of her and her old genin team; Nori, Hitoshi and Jiraiya-sensei.

It felt weird, to have him in her room like this; He looked out of place. His home was at the battlefield, with the porcelain mask covering his face and with a katana in hand. It was awkward to watch him walk in a girl room, with teddy bears on shelves and light pink bed sheets. Ayame blushed at the baby blanket that decorated the top of her bed.

She tried her best to stifle in a laugh, "Well, what did you want to talk about?" Her cheeks were still red, but she successfully disguised her laugh as a cough, and cleared her throat. She seriously felt like smacking herself in the head. She knew that she was being such a little girl in front of Itachi, and it definitely wasn't attractive.

But the ANBU member hadn't seemed to notice that Ayame's cheeks were red, or that she was holding back a laugh. But eventually he stopped walking, and spotted her across the room, with her back against the door. He came a bit closer, and whispered lightly, "Us."

Ayame felt her throat clog and her breathing was suspended just a little bit throughout her chest. _What did he mean by that? _She was never the type of girl who would go gaga over a boy. Especially not _Itachi_... Did she even like him? She didn't think so... not after being forced to marry him.

Kakashi's voice then rang through her ears; _Marriage is a big part of your life, why would you want to marry a jerk?_

Soon after, she regained her composure and faced him once more, "Well..."

"Well..." His smirk grew wider, and his onyx colored eyes gleamed in the fluorescent lights, "How about I show you instead?" He filled in the gap between them and before Ayame knew it, his cold, hard lips were on hers. Surprised, she gasped into his mouth but finally closed her eyes out of force. She never would have thought that her first kiss would be with Uchiha Itachi... in her bedroom... alone.

His cold hands pulled her closer roughly, and placed themselves on her lower back. Although she felt uncomfortable, she placed her hands awkwardly on his shoulders, and gave in.

* * *

"So first you hate Itachi, then you like him, then he kisses you, and now you hate him again?"

Yamanaka Nori sat on her bed, flipping through her latest fashion magazine while Ayame paced around nervously. The blond haired kunoichi's room was much bigger than her best friends. There was a balcony that opened out in the back that led in tons of sunlight and gave the room an airy feeling. She had plants hung up from the ceiling which gave it a romantic feel.

"I don't even know anymore," Ayame complained, folding her arms over her chest. She had just told her whole _"first kiss"_ story to Nori, who didn't seem as surprised to hear it. Apparently she_ knew_ that it was going to happen sooner or later.

The young, Yamanaka ninja looked up from the magazine, "So, what about Kakashi?" She asked simply, chewing loudly on a piece of gum. The elastic substance in her mouth snapped every few seconds, making the silence bearable.

Ayame's heart skipped a beat, and she wasn't sure why, it wasn't like anything she ever felt before. Suddenly she became interested on a speck of invisible dirt on the carpet, "What do you mean?"

Nori narrowed her eyes at her former teammate, "You know what I mean, Ayame," She got off the bed and walked over to her slowly, "Isn't there something going on between you two? I see the way he looks at you, and the way you act around him." She quirked an eyebrow up suspiciously, and wore a huge smile on her face.

The tall jounin barged into Ayame's thoughts, and she watched him in her mind. And for a moment, she wondered if she really did have any feelings for her senpai. It was weird to think about it though, for so many reasons. The first being that he was her brother's best friend and teammate. The second being that _he_ didn't see _her_ that way, so what was the point? And the third being that she was already engaged, therefore, off limits.

"Nothing is going on between us," Ayame blushed, "I repeat: Nothing." It was hard to imagine herself with… with… Kakashi. It just didn't seem _normal _to her. They had just started being friends with each other, and he was her trainer now. Their relationship was strictly business. Nothing more.

"Oookay, what ever you say," Nori smiled, and held up her hands in defense. But Ayame saw past her smile, and knew that she still believed her own theory.

* * *

Crossing her arms over her chest, Ayame was lost in her own thoughts until she reached a familiar patch of grass in the training grounds. It was late afternoon, and due to the humidity in the air, the young chuunin had a feeling that it was going to rain soon. Debating whether or not she should turn around a go back home, there was suddenly a poof in the air.

Emerging from a cloud of smoke, a certain gray haired ninja appeared, "Yo! Why the long face?" 75 percent of Hatake Kakashi's face was covered by his signature blue mask as he walked closer to where Ayame stood. He scratched the back of his head, knowing that he was a few minutes late, but didn't think it would make her mad.

His mind racked to the last time he was with her, the night he walked her home. Could he had made her mad from the comments he made about Itachi and her arranged marriage?

But Ayame shrugged, and tried to shake off the negative feelings, "Can we just get this practice started?" For some reason, she didn't think that talking to Kakashi about her relationship with Itachi was appropriate. They just started being friends, and she didn't want to make things awkward between them.

But then the her conversation with Nori interrupted her thoughts, and she remembered that she was accused of liking her senpai. _I see the way he looks at you, and the way you act around him_... What did she mean about the way he looked at her? Did his one visible eye seem different when he gazed at her, instead of the usual lazy look he gave everyone else?

The girl ruffled her eyebrows together, looking back at the Sharingan user in front of her. She tried not to think about the things Nori told her, and instead acted the way she always did: normal.

"Um, yeah, I actually have something really cool to show you," Kakashi explained, taking something out of his pocket excitedly. Smiling at herself, she couldn't help but notice how happy Kakashi seemed today. He was always nice to her, and respected her, but she never really saw him with a smile on his face. Well... a smile through the mask.

The dark haired Uchiha noticed a little slip of paper emerge from his pocket, and he held it simply between two of his fingers, "With this litmus paper, you can test which Chakra Nature you have."

"Chakra Nature?" Ayame ruffled her eyebrows, "You mean, the Elements? Like Fire, Water, Ground, Lightening, and Wind?"

"Exactly," He nodded lightly, "And if I focus all my chakra to the paper, it will show me what kind of Chakra Nature I have," he added simply. Seconds later, Ayame watched as Kakashi focused his chakra to the paper… and it crumpled.

"What does that mean?" She asked, pointing at the wrinkled piece of paper. She knew the different Chakra Natures, but never knew how to tell them apart.

"A crumpled paper means that my Chakra Nature is lightening. Which is, correct. Before I got the sharingan, most of my jutsu were lightening jutsu that came from the Village Hidden in Lightening," he explained, "On the other hand, the Uchiha clan is known for their fire jutsu… And since you are an Uchiha, why don't we see what you're result will be?" He reached deep into his pocket again, and produced another small litmus paper.

Her breathing irregular, Ayame accepted the small, smooth paper from him and held it between two fingers. She closed her eyes, and focused all of her Chakra to the small slip. A few seconds passed, and the kunoichi didn't have to open her eyes to tell that the paper had turned soaking wet.

"Water?" She questioned aloud. Ayame's eyelids folded back slowly, and she studied the now wet paper that was stationed between her two pale fingers.

"Huh," Kakashi stumbled, "Well that's weird. I thought for sure you were going to be a Fire type. Considering you're an Uchiha… but I guess not," He stared at the dripping paper, but shrugged his shoulders anyway, "This is going to be interesting."


	5. Missions Missions Missions

**I don't own Naruto or anything involved with the anime. The only thing I own is my character, Ayame, and my original ideas.**

* * *

Missions, Missions, Missions

* * *

"Come in."

Uchiha Ayame looked up at her jounin senpai, who stood beside her, as he pushed opened the big burgundy doors in front of them. Without looking back, the silver haired ninja led her into the rather large office. The soft carpet beneath them matched the color of the big doors, and the walls were a warm beige that coordinated perfectly. And as the two walked up, they reached a grand wooden desk with an old man sitting behind it.

"Ah, I've been waiting for you two," The Third Hokage of Konoha spoke as his unlit pipe hung loosely between his lips. Ayame eyed his desk carefully, noticing stacks of papers and documents that cluttered the desk. She wondered why his office always looked so littered and untidy. She shook her head lightly, and noticed a fire place just a few feet away from the desk.

The chuunin smiled, and let the warmth from the fire heat up her rather shaking body. It was rainy and cold outside- not the kind of weather she usually enjoyed. Although she loved rain, she hated the coldness that came with it. She preferred the humid from a summer rain instead.

"Yes, Hokage-sama, you wanted to see us?" Kakashi asked, in a deep and booming voice. And Ayame looked up at him, noticing just how serious he was when he talked to their elder. From the side, she noticed how the mask shaped his obviously chiseled face and jawbone. And as the two men spoke, she found herself lost in her own private toughts.

The old man cleared his throat, "Yes, I need the two of you to travel to Kirigakure (The Village Hidden in the Mist). There is a woman there who is paying us a lot of money to be escorted here by Thursday. So that gives you four days to get there and come back, understood?" In his hand, he held out a sealed scroll that had all the information and details written on it.

"Of course, Hokage-sama, we should be leaving just a little before midnight," Kakashi replied and accepted the scroll from his boss's wrinkled hand. He tore the end of the scroll, and opened it wide enough to read the first few bodies of writing. He studied the confidential information that he held onto tightly, his one visible eye dragging over each word.

Ayame's gaze attempted to peek over his shoulder, wondering what the mission was about. She was cut off when he rolled up the scroll swiftly, in an expert motion. Pouting, she crossed her arms over her small chest, and gave up. The Uchiha turned back to the old man behind the desk, and noticed that he rose an eye brow at her. She smiled back, and scratched the top of her head nervously.

"Will that be all, Sandaime-sama?" Kakashi asked, tucking the scroll into his weapon pouch. They watched as their superior nodded, and raised a single hand to dismiss them.

And as the Copy Ninja and his student turned, about to walk out of the office, the Hokage spoke from behind them, "Oh, and Kakashi, don't forget about what we talked about last time."

The sharingan user stopped in his place, facing the same double doors in which he came in from. His mind traveled back to when the Hokage spoke to him about Ayame. He still wasn't sure why he was supposed to watch her, or keep tabs on her, but because it was an order, he will continue doing it. His head turned to the side, "Hai, Hokage-sama."

* * *

The morning light erupted as the sun rose in it's beautiful bright colors. The skies were a gorgeous blue color, without a single cloud in it's way. Uchiha Ayame looked up at the beaming sun, while shielding her eyes for protection. "It looks like it's going to be a warm day," She spoke out loud, and turned to face the gray haired jounin next to her.

He was silent as he walked beside her, obviously having nothing to say.

The heat was starting to get to her, and so she removed the long sleeved Uchiha clan shirt she was wearing, to reveal a shorter white one under it. This shirt reached just below her belly button, and matched with the dark blue shorts she had on also.

They had been walking for a while, taking a break every few hours just to rest and to take bathroom breaks. But other than that, being alone with Kakashi felt nice. And she tried not to think about what Nori had said a couple days ago. She was wrong. Clearly nothing was going on between Ayame and Kakashi. They were friends. Nothing more. He's twenty years old, and she's only seventeen. He'd want to be with a woman who was older, right? Someone his own age?

They were still walking down the long dirt road to the Hidden Mist Village, and the weather was getting sunnier by the hour. "After the next mile, there should be a lake that we have to get across, in order to get to Kirigakure," Kakashi explained.

"Wouldn't it be faster if we ran there?"

"It would, but four days is more than enough time. And we won't want to waste out chakra on running there, because you never now when you might need your chakra. In case of an enemy attack, basically just for precautions," The silver haired jounin justified.

Ayame nodded her head in acknowledgment as he pulled out his little pink book. She recognized it instantly as an Icha Icha novel- and immediately remembered the type of content in the book. She never read any of them, personally, but she knew they were perverted and cheesy and such a waste of time.

"You know, when Jiraya-sama used to be my sensei, all he used to do was write those stupid books. And here you are, reading them. Isn't that a coincidence?" the kunoichi asked, rhetorically, tilting her head to the side. She looked over at him to see that he wasn't even paying attention to her. She then stood in front of him, and blocked his way from walking, snapping her fingers in his face, "Helloooo! Kakashi-senpai!"

"Um, huh?" He mumbled back, lowering the book a little, so that his one visible eye was revealed. Even though he had read the inappropriate novel several times, he always got lost within the pages. It was a bad habit of his, in which he hoped would never go away.

Ayame narrowed her eyes at him, and held both hands at her small waist, "You weren't even listening to me, were you?" There was a small smile playing on her lips, and the bright sunlight framed her face perfectly.

When Kakashi looked up at the Uchiha, he felt his throat become clogged and blocked all of a sudden. He watched as her brown eyes squinted under the harshness of the gleaming light, and her skin radiating beautifully. "U-Um y-you were talking a-about ramen, weren't y-you?" he stammered, and placed the book back in his pocket.

Ayame just rolled her eyes, scoffed, and mentally listed a million reasons why she hated that perverted book.

* * *

The two young ninja had finally reached the huge lake that stood in the middle of the woods. Yet, it wasn't even close to how Ayame expected it to be. She pictured a nice, beautiful body of water that sheltered ducks and other small animals. With trees planted all around, and flowers growing from the ground. A nice little stream by the side would have been nice too.

Instead, it was dark, murky, and covered in fog. The only animals sheltered here were probably alligators. The large lake was surrounded by a thick, nasty layer of humid mist that created such a dizzy and lightheaded feeling. The young chuunin loved water, and everything that had to do with water, but at this moment, she was extremely disappointed.

The small boat was probably on eight feet long, and reached the maximum capacity with only Ayame, Kakashi and small boat guy inside. He was a skinny old man, with dark clothing, who asked if they were married and on their honeymoon. Automatically, the two ninja cleared up the misunderstanding, with several blushes on their faces and high pitched tones of embarrassment.

"The boat ride will take some time, so I figured we should continue with your training," Kakashi explained, sitting across from Ayame on the small wooden boat. Fog seemed to cloud over them, but the young Uchiha had recently learned from her sempai that Kirigakure was often layered with fog from the water. He continued, "So Ayame, do you know any water jutsu you can show me first, so that I could see what level you are?"

The girl snorted in response, "Puh-lease, just sit back and watch, Kakashi-sempai, didn't anyone tell you that water jutsu is my specialty?" His one eyed expression seemed taken back, but still interested, regardless. He sat back, leaning against the boat, waiting for her to make another move.

She closed her eyes, drawing her chakra into her hands, recalling the process she used long ago. The Uchiha's fingers performed familiar hand symbols that transported her into a trance, and activated the chakra inside of her, "Mizu hyouketsu jutsu!" Almost instantly, all of the lake water froze, and the skinny old man looked at her, bewildered. He tried to lift the paddle up from the ice, but was not successful. Kakashi's arms broke apart as he stood up straighter in his seat, letting a small gasp leave his breath.

"H-How did you..?" Kakashi mumbled, confusedly. Ayame reversed the jutsu, so that the lake was back to normal. The boat guy went back to paddling after muttering a couple of inaudible words under his breath. The copy ninja on the other hand, still looked at the kunoichi in amazement and confusion.

"It's an old family jutsu," she explained, pushing a piece of dark hair behind her ear, "My great grandfather copied it from another ninja using his sharingan almost a hundred years ago. The clan where the jutsu originated from was soon wiped out, and my great grandfather was the only one left who knew how to use it. He taught it to my grandfather, who taught it to my father, who taught it to me."

It truly stunned him that she knew such a powerful jutsu that he never even heard of. And his mind traveled back to a couple days ago, when she had checked her Chakra Element. He remembered that her element was water, and was confused at first. "But how come I never saw Obito use it?" Kakashi asked, looking at her, while he scratched the back of his tall, silver hair.

Ayame was quiet for a moment, reminiscing in thoughts of her beloved older brother, Obito. She smiled a little, remembering his silly face and mischievous tone of voice. "Well, my dad promised Obito that he was going to teach him the jutsu when he got back from _that_ mission," she spoke slowly, "But he never did."

* * *

**I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter! I know a lot was going on at once, but hopefully all my readers understood everything that has been going on. Don't forget to review and move onto reading chapter 6!**


	6. Over Glomping Tramps

Over-Glomping Tramps

* * *

From the moment she laid eyes on her, Ayame knew it would not be a fun trip back to Konoha. With an immense attitude, the chuunin allowed Kakashi to introduce themselves to her. And as soon as they finished shaking hands, the _woman_ threw herself all over the copy ninja like a desperate tramp. With much strength, the young Uchiha kunoichi managed to suppress the vomit that was threatening to come up her throat.

Her pin straight hair was jaw length and almost a bright platinum blond color, which made her look like an overused ragdoll. Her big green eyes sparkled with every stupid little puppy dog pout, which was covered in a thick layer of red lipstick. And once your eyes traveled away from the hideous face... her fake implants seemed almost as big as her huge ego.

Her name was Sayura, and Ayame absolutely hated her.

"Come on, Ayame. She's not that bad," Kakashi muttered to his student, after she grunted in annoyance for the third time. He could easily tell that the Uchiha was ticked off, and couldn't really blame her. He could see how Sayura was annoying, but he learned that if he wanted to complete the mission, he would have to deal with it. His pupil on the other hand, didn't seem to understand that completing the mission was the most important thing. Well, besides protecting your companions.

Ayame didn't answer Kakashi, but instead gave him the deadliest glare that forced his one visible eye to look away. As he turned his back to her, she swore she heard a chuckle come out of him. Apparently, he found the whole situation between the two women to be _funny. _The teenage girl was about raise her voice, to tell him off, when Sayura opened her big mouth.

"Thank you for coming all the way to Kirigakure to escort me back to your village. I think you guys should stay here for the night though," she flickered her eyelashes toward the jounin, "I know you traveled a long way to get here, and it's the least I could do," she offered in a high pitched voice, more toward Kakashi than Ayame. She cupped her hands together in hope, which made her breast swell up underneath her thin shirt.

Kakashi scratched the top of his head, and looked toward his fellow Konoha comrade with a questioning glance. She didn't reply, but instead rolled her eyes at the idea of staying over Sayura's house for the night. Ayame studied the woman in her skanky little outfit, and almost gagged at every movement she made. She looked as though she was being squeezed in every direction. The Uchiha was starting to get tired of gagging at the sight of the woman every few minutes.

The Sharingan user smiled through his mask, "Arigato Sayura, that would be very much appreciated. We would be more than happy to stay." His voice sounded grateful and sincere. On the other hand, the dark haired kunoichi's mouth hung open in shock. She would have rather stayed in a dirty, cheap hotel.

"The only problem is," she placed a finger to her lip both innocently and seductively, "there's only one guest room," she announced, tilting her head towards Kakashi. Her long, black eye lashes flickered up and down again at a rapid pace. Her artificially blushing cheeks seemed pinker than before, giving her the appearance of a prostitute.

Kakashi cleared his throat, "Oh, that's fine. I could sleep on the couch," he gestured toward the piece of furniture, "And Ayame could sleep in the room." From the corner of his eye he noticed his partner's mouth hand open in shock. Why would he turn down an offer to sleep with the tramp? Even Sayura looked shocked, from being rejected.

She stuck her nose in the air snottily and disappointed, "Well fine, there's extra sheets in the closet if you need them," she pointed towards a plain white door in the hall, "I'm going to sleep now, we're going to need all the rest we can get." Ayame laughed at the woman's sudden standoffish reaction, thinking that she was just hoping to get lucky with a certain gray haired jounin.

Noticing Sayura's different tone of voice, Kakashi glanced toward the Uchiha and raised a single eyebrow. Ayame stopped laughing as her onyx colored eyes connected with his single brown one. The smile faded from her mouth as the stare continued between the both of them- none of them really wanting to look away. The fire within her stomach was starting to roar with life as the warmth traveled to her cheeks- staining them with red.

Suddenly, the sound of Sayura's bedroom door being slammed woke the two from the trance as they both jumped at the sound. Once again, Ayame tried not to think about Nori and everything she told her... _I see the way he looks at you and the way you act around him..._ And as much as she hated to admit it, the kunoichi was starting to realize what her best friend was trying to explain to her the whole time.

The young chuunin cleared her throat, looking away from the older ninja, "You know, Kakashi-senpai, you can sleep in the room with me. The bed is certainly big enough," she suggested, shrugging her shoulders. She directed towards the guestroom, which consisted of a double sized bed, actually big enough for three people.

He turned to face her, "Thanks Ayame, but I wouldn't want to make you feel uncomfortable," he scratched the top of his gray hair lazily, and stood up straight in the middle of the small, fancy looking living room. He kept his one-eyed gaze away from the girl in front of him, feeling the slight awkwardness and tension in the air.

She smiled up at him and shook her head, "I wouldn't be uncomfortable, we're just friends right? And plus, I wouldn't sleep on that couch if I were you. Who knows what kind of things she _does_on it, with other guys I mean." Ayame watched as Kakashi's visible eye widened in disgust.

* * *

Apparently, the double bed fit perfectly with both Kakashi and Ayame on it. They were even able to fit a row of pillows in the middle- just a insure that there was no physical contact between them. The copy ninja liked that, he didn't really want to cross any lines between them, especially since he was older. And definitely because he was her sensei/trainer.

Unable to fall asleep, he pulled out his Icha Icha book, only able to see the pages due to the glowing moonlight coming from the window. One of his favorite things to do, was read his little orange and pink books, because it helped him pass the time, and mostly distracted him from his thoughts.

What exactly was he thinking about?

Was he thinking of the young girl laying beside him?

Since Obito passed away, he never really payed any attention to Ayame as the years passed by. To Kakashi, she was just another girl in the village. Another person to avoid. But whenever he did see her, he couldn't help but notice how sad she looked. She was often alone, and when she was with her teammates, she still seemed solitary and lonely as ever.

And that's when Kakashi realized that they shared the same kind of pain. The kind of pain you still feel when you're surrounded by friends and family. The same pain you feel at night when you're laying in bed, unable to sleep. The same pain that restricts you from smiling with friends, or laugh genuinely at jokes. And no matter how hard you try, it's the kind of pain that you can't just erase from your soul. The kind of pain that doesn't seem to have a solution.

Kakashi never met someone that shared the same kind of pain as him before. Until now.

A movement on the bed caused the sharingan user to snap out of his deep thoughts and reasoning. He looked beside himself, noticing that Ayame was asleep and shifting in her spot. Her eyes were shifting rapidly under her eyelids, meaning that she was facing some kind of active dream... or nightmare.

The messy haired jounin have been through nightmares that no one could ever imagined. Most of the time, after an assassination mission, he would find himself drowning in his guilt. No, he never once killed an innocent person, but for the past few years he'd acted like a killing machine. The Hokage never thought twice about sending him on a beheading task in another village, knowing that Kakashi didn't have a soul to care.

And a part of him didn't care at the moment. The Hokage's intentions were true- he didn't have a soul, or at least one that cared about someone else's life, someone that deserved to die. But sometimes it ate at him at night- when he was in bed, trying to be engulfed in lovely dreams about ramen and perverted novels. Instead, his thoughts traveled to the person he killed that day, or the many people he killed on previous occasions.

What would his father think of him? Would he be proud that his son turned into some heartless killing machine? What about his mother? The one that he never got to know because she left his life at such an early age; was she looking down at him also?

His _friends_didn't seem to think of him any differently, mostly because no one knew about his classified ANBU missions given by the Hokage. They were confidential, meaning that no one else was aloud to read his files or know of his whereabouts.

But what if they did know? What if Gai, Asuma, Kurenai, Anko and Iruka knew? Would they treat him differently? Would they cringe at the sound of his name, or at the sight of his being? Would they consider him a heartless killer, like he considered himself?

Kakashi moved his small Icha Icha Paradise book down to his lap, not really reading from it anyway. And the gleam of light that was guiding his pages now fell on top of Ayame's angelic pale face. Her eyes squeezed together harshly, then adjusted slowly to the new lighting that fell over her. Her breath was inhaling and exhaling in small, short, regular intervals.

The jounin couldn't take his eyes off of her.

She looked so perfect, so serene. Her milky skin looked smooth, touchable even.

Ayame was one of the many people who didn't know about his life as an ANBU Black Op, and the missions he was sent on. If she knew about the people he killed, and the things he done... would she look at him the same? Would she consider him a monster? Would she feel a different kind of pain for trusting him, and now feeling opposed?

There was a feeling in his chest that he could not explain. He had never felt anything like it before... it was different... it was nice. It wasn't the usual feelings he felt; desperation, depression, guilt, sadness and despair. No, those weren't the feelings that enveloped his chest at the moment. Instead, he felt pride, hope, anticipation, promise...

He definitely wasn't used to those feelings, considering he never felt them before.

Looking down at the girl once again, he knew it was because of her.


	7. Developed Feelings

Collision:

Developed Feelings

* * *

Somehow, a miracle had passed them by. With many eye twitches and urges to attack a certain bimbo, Ayame had finally made it through the journey in one piece. She and her Hatake partner were now safe and sound in their hometown village of Konoha. Sure, she had spent a couple days with the most annoying woman she has ever met, but nothing could make her more happy than being back home. Believe or not, the Uchiha girl missed her mother, and father, and of course her two best friends.

It had to be a little passed midnight, Ayame could tell from the darkened skies and empty streets, which were usually filled with children. All that could be heard for miles were the hoots from owls and other nighttime creatures. The chuunin looked into the distance, wishing that her house wasn't so far. And also wishing, that her mother left some dinner out for her.

Ayame stretched her arms above her head and sighed, "That was a good mission, Kakashi-senpai," she announced, not really psyched about being with Sayura but glad for the wad of cash that was bulging in her pocket. No matter how difficult the mission is, she can always count on her pay to cheer her up.

From the corner of her eye, she noticed the jounin nod, "Yeah, except for the times when you wanted to kill Sayura. Although, I guess it was kind of entertaining..." He smiled, and Ayame wondered if it reminded him of a scene from his Icha Icha novels. Pervert.

The kunoichi chuckled, and paused in front of a four story tall apartment building, "Hey," She wrinkled her eyebrows together, "Don't you live here?" She thought she recognized the building from when he and Obito used to be friends, or friends/enemies/teammates/rivals.

Kakashi looked up also, "Huh, yeah I guess I do. But, I was thinking that I should walk you home," he explained. And without further statements, he continued walking towards the Uchiha compound. He knew that walking Ayame home was one of the things the Hokage had asked him to do. Sarutobi-sama was counting on him to keep the Uchiha girl safe from any dangers that might be targeted towards her.

A part of him wanted her safe anyway. Whether someone was after her or not, he wanted to take that extra leap and walk her home every now and then. These past few weeks have been amusing, fun and eventful with Ayame. She was funny, cute, feisty and... different. She was different than all the other girls he met. The ones who usually flirted with him constantly.

With her eyebrows ruffled to the center of her forehead, Ayame walked faster to catch up with Kakashi. For some reason his pace had quickened. She stopped in front of him to interrupt his walking, "Thanks, but no thanks Kakashi. I don't need a babysitter to walk me home. I can walk alone, I've been doing it all my life anyway," she folded her arms over chest and pursed her lips at him.

"Calm down Ayame, I'll just walk you to the corner of the block, since it's on the way to Iruka's place. I figured I should raid his refrigerator before bed. He'd like a little late night company, especially when it's not Anko," Kakashi explained and shrugged his shoulders casually while he continued to walk down the street.

Ayame eyed him suspiciously, but resumed walking next to him anyway. Deep down, she really couldn't understand why she didn't want him to walk her home. She always felt safer when he was around, and she really did enjoy his company- a lot. The Uchiha girl just didn't want him to think she was a weak and hopeless little girl.

Of course she _wanted _him to walk her home. She would do anything to have a few extra minutes of his company, to be beside him, to be near him. But what she wasn't looking forward to was the good bye part. Lately they had been spending so much time together, more than she was spending with Nori and Hitoshi, that she didn't like it when they were apart. She didn't know what to do with her time when they were apart.

Ayame's pace followed Kakashi's and when they reached the corner of the street, she turned to face him. "Okay, here's the corner," she announced, silently gritting her teeth, why did she always have to push him away? Why did she pretend like she didn't want him to walk her the rest of the way home?

"Before I go, I just want to let you know that there won't be any training for tomorrow," the gray haired ninja declared, "You've been through enough for the past four days, I'm sure you'd like to catch up with your friends and family." He also needed a day to sleep in past 8 am.

Her heart swooned to the bottom of her chest. She wouldn't see him tomorrow.

"Thanks, senpai," she muttered.

And before he knew it, he was watching the back of Ayame as she walked down the empty street, alone, wishing he was standing right beside her.

* * *

Yawning loudly, and stretching her arms way above her head, Ayame dragged herself to the kitchen table, still clad in her pajamas. She ruffled her own long dark hair before sitting down, "Good morning, mom," she greeted, and smiled at the older woman who had just set down a freshly baked loaf of bread.

The pleasing smell made Ayame's mouth water. She hadn't had an ounce of a home cooked meal in almost a week, and the beautiful, warm scent of the bread was driving her mad.

"Oh hey sweetie, I didn't hear you come in last night, it must have been really late. How was your mission?" She asked, peering at her daughter with wrinkled eyes. Just then, Ayame's father strolled through the kitchen with a newspaper in hand and a cup of tea in the other. As he passed by the table, he planted a kiss on his daughter's head, muttering a good morning, and continued to his seat.

"The mission was okay," Ayame flushed, she cut herself a piece of the warm bread, and began to nibble on it, resembling a hamster, "I'm just glad that I don't have any training today, Kakashi-senpai gave me the day off."

Her mother poured herself a cup of steaming tea and joined them at the table, "Splendid! I think you spend way too much time with that man anyway. A young girl like you should be spending more time with her _fianc__è__, _not with other _men_."

The chuunin almost choked on her breakfast, "What? Kakashi's not just some _man _that I'm spending all my time with. He happens to be helping me train for the jounin exams, you know that!" Ayame let out a sigh of disbelief. How could she say that about Kakashi?

"First of all, he's older, more experienced and has a horrible past, you shouldn't be associating yourself with someone like him. What do you suppose the neighbors think? What do you suppose Itachi's parents think?" She watched her daughter flinch, "Dear, all I'm saying is that maybe you should be bonding with Itachi more often, considering you're going to marry him-"

"-Yeah, and who's idea was that?"

"Enough you two," a deeper voice boomed, and the two Uchiha women looked towards the only man on the table, "Sango, you know Ayame is only working with Kakashi to improve her ninja status. And Ayame, you know you're mother only means well, and at some degree, she's right, you should be spending more time with Itachi."

"I'm sorry mom, I just got offended when you talked about Kakashi-senpai that way. All he's trying to do is help me, he's actually doing me a big favor. I'm sorry if you feel like I spend too much time with him, it's just that becoming a jounin is something that I really want," Ayame smiled slightly, "If it made you happy, perhaps I could find a way to spend more time with Itachi. After all, I am marrying him."

The older of the two women sighed, "I'm sorry too sweetie. I'm glad you've decided to spend some more time with Itachi, especially since your wedding date is getting closer and closer."

The young Uchiha smiled at her mother.

"Speaking of _wedding_, I bought your bridal kimono yesterday."

"Oh, mother."


	8. Water Jutsu, Sushi, and Night Attacks!

Water Jutsu, Sushi, and Nighttime Attacks!

* * *

She studied her reflection closely, as she dipped her pale feet into the cold but refreshing pond. Her long dark hair was combed out straight today, and hung down well below her waist. And her her onyx colored eyes, she peered down at the rest of her skinny body. A few stray hairs covered her left eye, and blocked some of her view.

"You kind of look like me when your hair is covering your eye," A familiar voice spoke from behind the girl. She didn't need to turn around to see that it was Kakashi, her senpai, since she spotted his reflection in the water. Her heart swooned. Her mother disapproved of Kakashi... she said he had a horrible past, and that he wasn't someone she should be associating herself with...

What did that mean, anyway?

Leaning back on her elbows, she lifted her dripping feet abover the water's surface before greeting her teacher, "Hello, Kakashi-senpai, nice of you to finally show up. I've been here for hours!" Ayame wasn't actually angry at him, she wasn't angry at all. Unsurprisingly, she was in a rather good mood. That was natural for her- to be in a good mood.

The jounin took a seat beside his subordinate and frowned through his dark blue mask, "I'm sorry Ayame, my alarm clock did ring this morning. I feel terrible for making you wait so long," he pouted invisibly.

But she rolled her eyes at his lame excuse, "Actually, I didn't really mind. I was distracted the whole time by this lake! The water is so clear today... it's beautiful..." She mumbled more to herself while splashing some of the water onto her shoulders. The sun was beaming heavily today, and felt extraordinary on her pale skin. The cold spring days were slowly transitioning into warm spring days. Ayame loved this transition in weather, when the trees started growing their leaves, and plants started spouting from the grounds. Nature was beautiful.

Kakashi leaned down on the soft green grass, watching the kunoichi.

Through the water, Ayame spotted his reflection again, and watched as his one visible eye watched her.

"Part of the reason why I wanted to train here today was because I was wondering if you could show me that water jutsu again," he pleaded. The girl could see that he was really interested, and not just nosy. She nodded, and he immediately started to remove his Konoha headband.

"No," she stated. He looked at her with a confused expression, "I'll show you my jutsu, and I'll answer any of your questions, but I do not want you to copy it," she could tell that he understood because he placed the headband back over his sharingan eye without a complaint. Without hesitating this time, Ayame got up from the grassy floor and walked into the pond.

She performed the familiar movements with her fingers and chanted, "Mizu hyouketsu jutsu!" In front of Kakashi's eyes for the second time in his life, the whole lake turned into ice, leaving nothing but her feet stuck into it. After a few minutes of letting Kakashi ogle the frozen water, Ayame reversed the technique and the lake returned to it's normal state.

"As I remember, you said your grandfather copied this technique from a water clan in Kirigakure, right?" Kakashi asked, standing up from the ground, and brushing the back of his dark pants. Ayame then walked out of the water, with soaking wet legs from the knees down.

"Yep," she answered, "And there are other water jutsu too. Some that I could use in close combat fighting, and long distance fighting as well," she concluded.

Kakashi nodded, obviously impressed. He probably had no idea that Ayame contained this much skill. **  
****  
**"Maybe you could tell me more about it over lunch? There's a new sushi restaurant that just opened, and Kurenai said the food is excellent. Will you join me?" Kakashi asked politely, folding his hands behind himself.

The teenaged girl was a little taken back by the offer, but still wanted to go, "Hai, that would be nice. I love sushi," she responded, smiling so widely that her dark eyes squinted. He laughed at her facial expression and started walking out of the forest and into the busy town.

* * *

Just like he had promised, Kakashi treated Ayame to lunch, and by the time they left the restaurant, the sky had turned dark. They hadn't realized how long they had been in there. The afternoon sun had set a while ago and the moon was shining proudly in the darkened sky.

As she walked next to the copy ninja, she thought about how much their relationship had changed over the past month. It was April already, and that meant that June was coming soon. There were so many things going on next month. There would be the jounin exams that she still hadn't signed up for... her eighteenth birthday... and oh yeah, she almost forgot, her wedding. The smile on her face quickly turned into a grimace.

The strained, old voice of her mother suddenly filled her head.  
_  
__H__e's older, more experienced and has a horrible past, you shouldn't be associating yourself with someone like him...__**  
**__**  
**_"Kakashi," Ayame spoke aloud, catching the attention of the man walking beside her, "Can I ask you something personal?"

He nodded silently.

"I've heard some rumors about you around town," she admitted, not really wanting to out her mother, "Rumors saying that you did some horrible things. People warn me not to get too close to you. Why?"

He sighed.

"You should listen to them Ayame. As you probably already know, I'm a member of the ANBU and I get sent on hundreds of assassination missions each year. That's who I am. Those people, those rumors… they're all true. You really shouldn't be with someone like me, and I'm surprised that you even stuck around this long."

Ayame gulped.

"I'm not saying this to scare you or anything, I just think that you should know that I'm not an angel. I'm dangerous, strong… lethal."

The Uchiha ruffled her eyebrows to the center of her forehead, "But you're not like that at all... you're smart, brave and funny," her cheeks flushed to a fresh pink color, and it wasn't from the nighttime breeze. She felt the goose bumps traveling up and down her arms. So the things her mother had said… they were all true. But just because he did all those things… it didn't make him a horrible person.

"I guess I have you to thank for that," He expressed, and Ayame felt a warmth creep up her neck, "Or Jiraiya-sama at least. If he hadn't convinced me to quit the ANBU and help you train for the jounin exams, I'd probably be on an assassination mission right now."

Ayame felt butterflies.

She noticed that he was just so different around her. He wasn't at all like the person that he described. He wasn't dangerous or anything like that. He was kind to her, and gentle. He was patient with her training, never pushing her too far. He moved at her pace.

Her mother was wrong. So wrong. He wasn't just some _man_ who suffered through a horrible past. He wasn't dangerous at all. Instead, he was hurt. He felt pain because everyone he ever loved is gone. He didn't have anyone to support him as he got older... he had absolutely no one.

"I don't mean to sound cheesy or anything, but I don't think that Obito would have wanted to see you become and assassin. I don't think that's what he meant when he said he wanted you to see the future for him," Ayame's voice quivered, "He would have wanted you to be strong and independent, he would be proud to see who you are right now. Today."

Kakashi quirked his eyebrow, "Can't you say the same for yourself? Wouldn't Obito want you to be strong, wouldn't you want him to be proud of you? He would want you to stand up for your own rights, stand up for yourself and what you really want."

Ayame stopped walking and stared at the man next to her, "What are you talking about?"

"Itachi," he spoke simply, "You don't have to marry him. You don't have to sacrifice your happiness for the rest of your life." His voice was nonchalant, as if it was a normal matter. As if giving away her lifetime's happiness was something common. But he was right. If Obito was alive, he would have yelled at his parents for even thinking about shipping his sister off to another family.

"I don't have a choice."

"No one is holding a kunai to your throat, no one is forcing you."

"You don't understand, Kakashi. It's not that simple."

"You don't have to do this, Ayame."

Ayame threw her arms up in the air, "Why do you care? How does my relationship with Itachi affect you?" There was anger in her voice. He was right though… he was so right and she knew it. She should have the guts to stand up for herself and for what she wants. But how could she? After she already agreed to it? How could she possibly back out now?

His visible eye wandered to an unknown location up in the sky, he avoided visual contact, "You're right, it doesn't," he added, "I'm sorry I brought it up."

There was a moment of silence between the two. Neither of them found the right words to say after such a heated argument. Ayame was mad at Kakashi for judging her based on her decisions, but was even madder at herself for knowing what he said was true. Kakashi was just upset for letting his emotions get in the way. He and Ayame hadn't known each other that long and it was unfair of him to make those kinds of accusations.

"Look," Ayame initiated, "Let's just forget this conversation happened, okay?" Her eyes were filled with sadness and regret, but she knew she couldn't unsay anything she already said.

Kakashi wasn't sure what to say next. He was having such a great day with her. Every moment in the sushi restaurant was filled with joy and laughter and now... the mood was completely diminished. He couldn't help but feel like it was his fault too. He had never acted like this in front of anyone before.

_Why did her marriage to Itachi bother him so much? Was it because he was just looking out for her as an older bother? Or was it because of something else?__ What if she really did like him and Kakashi was just making her feel bad this whole time? _

"I guess I'll see you tomorrow for training, 6 am sharp," He turned his head and faced the moon, with darkness engulfing his figure, "Good night, Ayame."

Slowly, Ayame watched as he walked away.

...One Hour Later...

Ayame was safe and sound in her house, and that's all that mattered at the moment. Kakashi tried not to think about the conversation they had, but it was the only thing on his mind. He didn't mean to sound like a jerk... even though he was sure he did. Sure, she was allowed to do whatever she wanted with her life, but couldn't she see that Itachi was such a bad choice for her?

Kakashi knew he wouldn't treat her right. She was too delicate... sweet... caring... compassionate... She needed someone better, someone who knew her well. Someone who was used to the sound of her laugh, and the slight dimples that were visible when she smiled widely. Someone that notices the change in her voice as she goes from a silly conversation to a serious one. Someone that finds all of her quirky stories and jokes interesting...

Someone like him. Someone like him? No no no... Definitely not someone like him.

Kakashi was a conflicted, wounded at the heart. He couldn't get involved with such an innocent girl. He wouldn't. First of all, she was younger… so much younger compared to the girls he was used too. And she was innocent, and so much more inexperienced than he was. He wouldn't taint her and poison her with his experiences. She deserved more than that.

Sighing deeply, he loved the feeling of the cool nighttime air on the back of his warm neck. He was in no rush to report back to the Hokage, instead, he took his time, walking through Konoha slowly.

He still didn't understand why he was supposed to be watching over her, he wasn't sure what kind of danger she was in. All he knew was that he was supposed to keep tabs on her.

"Hatake Kakashi,"

The gray haired ninja stopped dead in his tracks and widened his eye in fear when the sound of a sneering familiar voice reached his ears. He reached for a kunai, but was too late, due to a small silver shuriken that zoomed past his left eye, slicing through the material of his mask.


	9. Mysterious Encounters

Mysterious Encounters

* * *

"Hatake Kakashi,"

The gray haired ninja stopped dead in his tracks and widened his eye in fear when the sound of a sneering familiar voice reached his ears. He reached for a kunai, but was too late, due to a small silver shuriken that zoomed past his left eye, slicing through the material of his mask.

The fast-thinking jounin turned around and jumped onto the nearest tree branch that was low enough to reach. It was the shining gold eyes that stood out to him. It was the shining gold eyes that made him realize who it was.

Orochimaru.

One of the three lengendary sanin. A wanted missing nin. A murderer. And here he was... only five feet away.

Kakahsi didn't attack at first, remembering all of the rumors he heard of the snake-like man. He was dangerous... and far more powerful than any other foe he faced before. He was a direct student of the third Hokage, and that had to mean something. Plus, for all he knew, this could be just a shadow clone. There was no point of getting all worked up and wasting chakra for a shadow clone.

Orochimaru laughed and eyed the sharingan user in front of him from head to toe, while flipping his straight black hair out of his face. His pale skin seemed almost translucent, as if he wasn't even human. "Haha," he drawled, "The famous copy ninja Hatake Kakashi. We meet at last! But I'm not here to fight you... although, if you don't cooperate, I will have to," he cackled, "I believe you have something I need."

Keeping his position, Kakashi looked at the pale figure standing in the moonlight, taking in everything he said. Finally he answered, "I have nothing to give you, I don't know what you're talking about." His hand reached near his weapon pouch, ready for any quick movements that Orochimaru might make.

Suddenly, he disappeared in a clear puff of smoke.

The copy ninja looked around the deserted area, wondering where his enemy went. But his eyes widened once again as he heard a voice over his shoulder. "You have a certain bloodline trait that doesn't belong to you. I need you to hand it over, or else, I'll get it the hard way. Find a way to get it out by next week. I'll be expecting it."

And with that, he disappeared a second time, leaving Kakashi confused, stunned and worried**.**

Sprinting across the moonlit city, the jounin didn't stop until he reached the familiar balcony. Without waiting for a signal to come in, he busted into the third Hokage's office.

Sarutobi was creating symbols on a blank scroll when he spilled Kanji ink all over his desk from the shock.

"I'm sorry Hokage-sama, but I just ran into Orochimaru," he explained. Kakahsi recounted the whole incident to the Hokage, fitting in every detail, while he paced the rather large office. The Hokage, on the other hand, just sat at his desk and listened while he spoke, nodding only a few times here and there.

"Kakashi... there is something I have to tell you," the old man's deep voice filled the room, causing him to stop moving and pacing, Sarutobi continued, "I needed you to keep tabs on Ayame because of this reason. I had an ANBU member tail Orochimaru for me, and he witnessed Orochimaru saying that he needed the sharingan. I figured that he wouldn't attack any of the older experienced Uchihas, that's why I wanted you to watch Ayame. I don't know if she will ever develop her sharingan, since she's already seventeen, but I couldn't take any chances."

Kakashi gritted his teeth.

"But another theory I have is, that Orochimaru is just after you to get to Ayame. He has to know that you've been training her... that you've been spending every moment with her. He's probably trying to scare you so that you could distance yourself away from her. Then he could get what he really wants. Her."

_Ayame..._Why was it that she was thrown into the middle of all of this? She was so innocent... so clueless about Orochimaru and what he wanted... She didn't deserve to be targeted.

"But what about Itachi?" Kakashi hissed his name like vermon, remembering the earlier conversation he had with Ayame, "Or his little brother, Sasuke?" He interjected, running fingers through his own hair frustratingly. The blue masked ninja didn't really care about Itachi, but he was just curious about Orochimaru's intentions.

"Itachi is very close to his little brother. I know that he wouldn't let anyone touch Sasuke. But I do, however, hire a ninja to watch over him whenever Itachi is on a mission," the Hokage explained, "But I thought you were safe, Kakashi. I didn't think he would confront you, since you have only one sharingan eye. I would assume he would aim for two. He must be getting desperate."

Rubbing his masked face with his large hands, the copy ninja nodded, looking down at the Hokage's carpet as he continued, "Seeing as he wants the sharingan within a week, I think it would be best if Ayame and I left town on a mission for a couple days."

"I think that would be best. Try to enjoy your weekend Kakashi, I want you and Ayame to report to my office first thing on Monday morning for your new mission."

* * *

Uchiha Ayame stood in front of her full length mirror in her medium-sized bedroom, she was wearing a light pink sundress that hugged her skinny curves and petite body. Her long dark hair was in soft waves and collided with the length of her dress accordingly.

"Mom, is an engagement party really necessary?" She whined for the billionth time in the past few hours. Her mother had apparently sent out invitations _weeks_ago saying that she would be hosting an engagement party today. And of course, Ayame knew nothing about it.

"Of course it's necessary, dear! You're getting married in a month from now, and you'll be eighteen next week!" She exclaimed, "Every soon-to-be married couple needs an engagement party as blessing for their wedding."

The chuunin looked over her shoulder and towards her bed where Nori laid down, flipping through a fashion magazine. She rolled her eyes when she saw Ayame's complaining face, "I completely agree with you, Mrs. Uchiha," she babbled to the older woman. Nori had her blond hair curled today, and wore a similar blue dress that made her sea green eyes stand out.

"Thank you Nori, now c'mon, everyone is waiting for you outside!" Uchiha Sango stressed and rushed her daughter and her daughter's best friend out of the room and out of the front door. The streets of the Uchiha compound was blocked off today due to the _special event_.

The sky was slightly dim as the sun was almost setting.

Ayame's mouth hung open when she reached the front door to leave her house. It seemed like all of Konoha was crammed within the compound's gates. The crowd resembled the gathering she would usually see at the Sakura Festivals. Everyone was dressed in their nicest clothes, with smiles plastered on each and every one of their faces.

Ayame found herself squeezing through the crowd, receiving lots of "congratulations" and "best wishes" from some people she knew, and some from strangers she didn't recognize. As soon as she made it to the other end of the yard, someone enveloped her into a tight hug.

"Ayame, I haven't seen you in over a week!"

She recognized the slightly deepened voice of one of her best friends- Hitoshi.

He loosened the hug enough so that she could see his face. He looked beat up and tired, but still happy to see a friend. "Hitoshi! What have you been up to?" She asked, ever since the training with Kakashi started, they haven't had much time to spend together. But as she looked closely at her former teammates face, she noticed many bruises and deep cuts that seemed painful.

"Well, you remember all that training I did? Well it paid off, because I'm officially a member of the ANBU Black Ops," he announced pointing his thumb toward his chest proudly. His large gray Hyuuga eyes gleamed pridefully, and his unruly black hair was as messy as ever.

Ayame hugged him once more, "Hitoshi, that's great! You know.. you should go find Nori and tell her, I'm sure she'll be so happy for you." She couldn't help but remember the day she noticed their new flirtatious connection. At first she was so opposed to the idea of her two friends being together... but all in all, it wasn't her place to say. If they wanted to be together, who was she to stop them?

And after the suggestion, he bid her goodbye and went in search of Nori through the hazardous crowd.

Suddenly feeling lonely, the teenage ninja looked around, hoping to spot a familiar face. But, she was in no luck. Her mind drifted to her trainer, Kakashi. They haven't spoken since the day of their late night argument. The gray haired senpai kept canceling their training appointments, and Ayame couldn't help but feel that it was because of their heated conversation.

"You look beautiful."

Ayame spun around in her spot as her long dark waves trailed behind her. The smile was wiped off of her face as her sensitive dark onyx eyes were met with harsh, intense ones.

"Itachi-kun," she muttered, not expecting it to be him. Who was she expecting?

Uchiha Itachi was wearing a pair of simple black pants and a black shirt with the Uchiha crest on the back. He was standing so relaxed and poised with his hands in his pockets.

"Can I talk to you alone, please?" His dark eyes were pleading and the tone of his voice was different- was there a hint of consideration? Or was it hope? Whatever it was, Ayame was shocked that he even had an emotion other than his usual monotone self.

Her cheeks reddened, and remembered the last time she saw Itachi. It was in her bedroom, when he came over that one day, almost two weeks ago. He came to her bedroom, and he kissed her. Her first kiss... She didn't like it at first, but it turned out to be rather pleasant. His cold lips were influenced by the warmth of hers, and the way he held her waist was sweet and respectable.

Finally, wondering what he needed to talk about, she peered over her shoulder, looking for a private place, "Sure, let's go over here," she led him to a confined alley between two houses. Everyone in the crowd was out of earshot and the area was relatively quiet compared to the rest of the compound area. "So what did you want to talk about?" She asked, when they were finally alone.

He looked up towards the sky, the sun was still out, and on it's way to setting, "I just wanted to clear up a few things between us," he looked back down and towards his fiancè, "And about this wedding."

Ayame gulped loudly, "What about it?"

"You're young, I get that. You still want to enjoy the adventures of life and experience the pleasures of being a teenager," he stated simply, "You don't want to get married."

The girl's eyes widened and she stared at him in shock.

"Neither do I," he finished, "I don't necessarily like the idea of taking away someone else's happiness... because I know that I won't make you happy. I'm not interested in making any girl happy right now. Right now, I'm focusing on my career, my talents, and my prowess as a ninja. And no offense, but I think that a marriage will just hold me down from my dreams right now."

Tears fell down the pale cheeks on Ayame's face.

"See this is exactly what I'm talking about, girls like you are what hold me-"

Itachi's statement was cut off due to the impact of Ayame's body colliding into his. He looked down at his chest, and noticed the girl hugging onto him with a tight grip, "Erm," he patted her back awkwardly until she let go.

"Thank you, Itachi-kun, thank you so much. I always thought you were a jerk, but you're actually a very thoughtful person. Thank you for not letting me go through with this wedding," the Uchiha girl's eyes were red with tears and her voice was shaky, "But what will we tell our parents?"

"Don't worry, I'll come up with something over the weekend."

She lunged at him with a hug once more, this time with a smile on her face. Itachi once again, patted her awkwardly on the back.

"Okay, I should go celebrate our separation or something," she concluded, with tears of joy still clad on her face. And with that, she wiggled out of the alley, feeling impatient... wanting to go out and celebrate. But then again, she wanted to be alone. To be alone with her thoughts... and the gratefulness of everything that happened in the past two minutes. But before she could reach the exit gates of the compound, she felt a hand tug on her elbow, holding her back.

"Ayame, where are you going?"


	10. Answered Prayers

Answered Prayers

* * *

Standing nonchalantly in the corner of the Uchiha compound, Hatake Kakashi wore a smug grimace on his face as he leaned on a nearby wall. He was partly grateful for the navy blue mask that covered his face. He was sure his expression was scary... or at least ugly.

Somehow, he let Gai talk him into attending Ayame and Itachi's pre-wedding engagement party. He almost gagged at the mention of it. Kakashi couldn't think of something he hated more than the thought of Itachi and Ayame together... married... kissing... would they sleep together also?

No, he wouldn't think about that.

He mentally cursed Konoha's Green Beast for dragging him to the event. But Gai didn't know about the conversation he had with Ayame. Gai didn't know of Kakashi's hatred for Itachi and his hatred of their marriage. Was the copy ninja unconsciously being an over-protective brother-type to Ayame? Or was he secretly jealous that another man would be spending the rest of his life with her?

He was afraid it was the latter.

But there were three main reason, among the many, why Kakashi couldn't get _involved_with Ayame. And Kakashi knew these three reasons well, for he kept replaying them in his mind over and over again in his head.

The first was that she was Obito's little sister. Kakashi's relationship with Uchiha Obito was probably the closest thing to friendship that he ever had. And that was saying something, considering that most of the time they were either competing or fighting with each other. The copy-ninja didn't really pay any mind to Ayame back then, but after spending so much time with her for the past month, he realized so many similarities between her and her brother.

The second reason was because Kakashi was afraid to get close to anyone ever again. His father, Obito, Rin, Minato-sensei... everyone he ever bothered building a relationship with was dead. Or in Rin's case, kidnapped. But there wasn't a doubt in his mind that she was dead also. What if Kakashi didn't hand over his sharingan eye to Orochimaru? Would he target Ayame since he's been spending so much time with her?

He growled silently under his breath.

The third, and most obvious reason, was that she was already taken. Unavailable. And the gray haired man knew that he shouldn't be talking about her like that... as if he had a chance anyway. But either way, he couldn't ignore the fact that she was engaged. And whenever he brought it up, and he knew he shouldn't, Ayame wouldn't change her mind.

Finally, he spotted her among the crowd. As he shook his private argument from out of his head, he pin-pointed Ayame's figure from between the gathering of all the people.

She was wearing a light pink dress that fell right above her knees, and hugged her petite curves. It was a definite change from her usual training clothes, the only type of clothes Kakashi saw her in. And he couldn't help but keep his one eye off of her smile. It was so genuine, so real.

Weeks ago he was more than confident that Ayame shared the same type of pain that he did. The type of pain that made you feel so alone, even when you're surrounded by friends and family. But now he wasn't so sure if she felt that pain anymore. He wasn't sure if he could compare himself to her anymore... because she looked happy.

Kakashi watched as Ayame hugged Hitoshi and conversed with him for a while. He couldn't understand the things they were saying, but he knew it was a happy conversation. He knew that she hadn't been with her friends for a while, and he knew that it was partly his fault. They had been spending a lot of time together the past few weeks.

He continued to observe them until the Uchiha girl hugged her former teammate one last time, and pointed him out to the direction of their other friend, Nori. She then stood for a while by herself, looking through the cloud. And that's when Kakashi's back left the wall, aiming to get closer to her.

He would apologize, for the fight they had the other night.

But before he could get closer, someone else approached her from behind.

_Itachi_, he growled.

His face resumed to the expression of disgust as he took in the scene of Ayame and her _finac__é_talking together. A few seconds later, the jounin noticed the girl bringing the dark haired man into an alley, and mentally cursed.

What was going on?

As he pushed people out of the way, Kakashi desperately wanted to get closer to the alley between two houses, where Ayame and Itachi were now standing in.

Were they having a moment alone? A _private _moment?

Minutes later, Ayame emerged.

She wiggled out of the alley, her face was red and covered in tears. No one else around her seemed to notice, but since a certain gray haired man was watching the whole time, he sped up closer to her.

Did Itachi hurt her? Did he say something to crush her little heart?

Just as she was reaching the exit gates of the compound, Kakashi tugged at her elbow, barely reaching her in time. He didn't care about the numerous boundaries he was breaking right now. As of that moment, he no longer felt like her _senpai_, her _trainer,_ instead, he felt like someone who cared about her. Someone who wanted all the pain in her life to go away. It was amazing how just a few minutes ago she was smiling and laughing... and now tears stained her perfect face.

"Ayame, where are you going?"

The girl tried pulling her elbow from the tight grip of the copy-ninja's hold, but it wouldn't even budge. Finally, she turned around to see Kakashi, and his one visible eye was filled with questions. Her heart melted at the sight of him. He had been on her mind since the last time they talked, he was the only one she could think about. Wasn't she supposed to be angry with him? Didn't he avoid her, and cancel all of their training appointments on purpose just so that he wouldn't have to see her?

"Ayame, what happened? Where are you going?" He repeated, impatiently. People were starting to look at them, noticing the scene displayed near the tall gates of the Uchiha compound. Her cheeks were reddening at the attention as she felt numerous pairs of eyes staring at her.

She tried pulling her elbow once more, but it was useless.

"Kakashi, I just want to get out of here, okay?"

He loosened his grip a little, and replied, "Fine, but I'm coming with you, just in case you do something drastic." And with that he pulled her out of the compound by her elbow, and into the rest of Konoha.

When he finally released the girl, a red mark was formed on the curvature of the inside of her elbow, due to the tight clench. He looked over and muttered a _sorry_while scratching the back of his head nonchalantly. She didn't say anything to him the whole time, she just kept walking down the familiar path into the forest. Kakashi didn't say a word either, he just followed behind her.

What could she say? Would she tell him that Itachi was putting a stop to the wedding? Would she share the good news with him? Ayame didn't want to bring up the same subject that caused them to fight the other night. But on the other hand, it was a good thing, that the wedding was called off. It was something that they both wanted.

But then Ayame didn't want Kakashi to think that she did it _for _him. That would be weird... awkward even. She didn't want her senpai to think she had a _crush _on him. The gray haired ninja would think of her like a little immature school girl... right? She was younger than him... she was inexperienced, juvenile, childish.

On the other hand, Kakashi was older, experienced when it came to women, he was mature.

Suddenly, she stopped walking and turned, she felt Kakashi stiffen because he knew where she was going. And when they reached the destination, she dropped to her knees and began sobbing. Kakashi walked beside her and knelt down also, looking at the large black K.I.A. Stone.

The Hatake ninja didn't know that Ayame was crying tears of joy. She was happy because somewhere in heaven, God answered her prayers... or maybe it was Obito who was looking down on her. Whoever it was... she was thankful. They got Itachi to stop the wedding. The wedding that would have ruined her life. The wedding that she never wanted.

All her life, she always thought that she would marry that man she _loves_ and when she was _ready_. Not to some over achieving ninja at the age of eighteen. She was still young, she wanted to live.

"Ayame," Kakashi's voice was smooth and mellow, "Tell me what happened."

The tears of happiness were starting to dissolve on her pale face, and she turned around to Kakashi, this time taking a seat on the soft ground. "Itachi," she exclaimed, "Is calling off the wedding."

A roar of pleasure filled Kakashi's chest like a spoonful of warm soup. It swallowed his heart and lifted his soul off his toes. _She's not marrying him after all._

But he was confused; why had she been crying? Was she sad that the wedding was called off? Did she really love Itachi, and was she looking forward to the wedding? If she was, then Kakashi felt like a jerk. Like an idiot. All those times that he tried to talk her out of it... and it turned out that she really loved him the whole time?

"I don't understand," he admitted.

Ayame looked up at him, with gleaming black eyes, "Someone up there," she then looked up at the clouded sky, "Answered my prayers. Itachi confided in me that he didn't want to be held back by a wife. He wanted to focus on his career as a ninja, and I think that that was supposed to offend me, but it didn't," she chuckled, "I'm finally free... I know my parents will be upset when they hear the news... but what can they do? When I'm good and ready, I will fall in love and get married. But that's not going to be today, or tomorrow or next month. I'm going to fall in love slowly and at my own pace. Like Obito would have wanted me to."

Kakashi felt a roar of pleasure erupt in his chest once again.


	11. Not Another Care In The World

Not Another Care In The World

* * *

Hatake Kakashi hadn't realized how long they had been walking until his knees felt weak and his muscles were tense. To top it off, his stomach was also growling. What really kept him going all this time was the Icha Icha book perched in his right hand, and the sound of the sand beneath his shoes. But most importantly, the safety and happiness of the girl walking beside him is what kept him motivated for the journey ahead.

They were in a neighboring city, somewhere near Amegakure, and were surrounded by many small family owned shops and businesses.

"It's nice here," Ayame remarked, studying all the booths as they walked through an outdoor market. Merchants sold everything from clothes to food to even weapons and furniture. The Uchiha had a glowing smile on her face, "It's so different from Konoha."

"Hai," Kakashi agreed, but wasn't really as fascinated since he traveled to many places before. Yet he knew what she meant, Konoha was known for their diverse culture when it came to businesses, yet it had more cities and less agriculture. At a young age he noticed that every town, every city, every country was different. And no matter where he went, whether if it was for missions or for vacation, he never enjoyed a place more than he loved his hometown.

"Let's stop here for a while and take a break from walking."

Looking up, the girl noticed that they were in front of a small restaurant, and smiled, "Are you hungry?"

"Kind of, but that's not the only reason why we need to stop," Kakashi scratched the back of his head, like he normally did, "I just need to explain some things to you about this _mission _before we continue walking."

Ayame nodded, taking a seat at the closest table to the door, "What about the mission? You told me it was confidential," She recalled the moment they shared after they escaped her engagement party. That night the copy ninja informed her that the Hokage was sending them both on a confidential mission to Amegakure for research. They weren't supposed to know about the details until they reached to the destination.

"Hai," he took a seat across from her, "I lied. There is no mission."

The dark haired girl opened her mouth slightly, and a confused expression took over her face.

"The Hokage wanted us to leave town for a couple days, so he made me lie to you about this mission," he explained, "Just think of it as a vacation."

The puzzled look disappeared as a smile formed on her lips, "Really? Thank God, because my parents were so mad at me for leaving my own engagement party and are giving me the silent treatment. I'm so glad that I'm out of that house," her smile grew wider, "Itachi said he'd be talking to our parents soon anyway, and I do not want to be around when that happens."

There was a comical look on her face, and Kakashi grinned under his mask. He had to admit that he was a little shocked though, he thought for sure Ayame was going to yell at him for lying to her in the first place. But he guessed that her situation with Itachi overpowered her normal feelings and thoughts. She was just too happy at the moment.

"So what are we supposed to do for the next few days?"

"Train, I guess," he reached into his weapon pouch and produced his favorite little orange book, "Lets hurry up and get some food so we can get back on the road and keep walking up to the village. We can find somewhere to stay for the night."

She smiled towards her senpai, feeling glad that she was actually spending time with him.

* * *

"We're almost here," Kakashi announced.

"Finally," Ayame retorted.

Kakashi raised an eyebrow to her, and led her off the dirt road that they had been walking on for hours. The sun was starting to set, giving the sky a beautiful shade of reddish purple. He halted in front of her, "First, I want you to close your eyes."

"Why?"

"Just do it."

"Fine."

Ayame squeezed her eyes shut lightly, while smiling, and felt Kakashi reach for her hand. She allowed him to lead her through an unknown path, feeling the terrain beneath her feet change from dirt ground to soft patches of grass. There was a peculiar sound reaching her ears, a combination of birds chirping and streaming water. A familiar smell also reached her nose, something like berries, and flowers with a rushing scent of fresh water.

"Okay," Kakashi announced, "You can open your eyes now."

As her dark eyes fluttered open, the first thing she noticed was a long, flowing waterfall, with a clear blue lake surrounding it. Trees kept the area shaded, with it's beautiful green grass and sprouting summer flowers of all colors. Her mouth hung open in shock at the beauty that she was enclosed in. "Ka-Kakashi... where are we? And where did this place come from?"

Her voice was soft and full of wonder as her eyes never left the scenery around her. Kakashi chuckled at her sudden change of mood, and stepped closer to her, "We're just a few minutes away from Takigakure," he explained, "My dad used to bring me here when I was little, we used to train here occasionally. Sometimes he just wanted to get away from town and out of Konoha for a day or two. It's nice here, isn't it?"

Ayame nodded, "It's beautiful."

"Well you have a choice, we can either stay here for the night, or walk up to the village and stay at an inn," he offered, already knowing the answer she would pick. From the way she reacted, he knew that she would rather stay here than at a hotel.

She looked towards him, as if it was obvious.

The kunoichi dropped her bag on the floor, "I'm staying here," she said simply and walked over to the small lake that was in the center of the grassy paradise. She peered at herself in the clear water, and with the help on the glowing sun behind her, she was able to see her reflection almost perfectly. She watched as the long waterfall emptied it's contents into the lake smoothly.

The sight of the flowing water was truly magnificent.

"Why is it that this area is so deserted?" She asked, her eyebrows ruffling towards the center of her forehead, "Surely people know about this place right?"

Kakashi scratched the back of his head, "It's really well hidden, and I don't think I've ever seen anyone else here before. But near Takigakure, there are a lot more places like this surrounding the town. Their whole border is enclosed within about a dozen waterfalls to throw people off and to get them confused. That village is really well hidden, it's entrance is behind one of the waterfalls, the trick is to find out which one..."

"Wow, I would love to live in a village like that," Ayame dipped her feet into the cool lake, "So confined in privacy and peace... always surrounded by flowing water... It must be beautiful there."

"Well maybe tomorrow we can go up to the village and have a visit," he offered.

Ayame nodded as her feet were now engulfed within the water.

* * *

The sun had fell considerably as hours passed, the moon was on the verge of rising as the skies darkened. Ayame sat across from Kakashi as he got a fire started on a couple pieces of stray wood and logs. On top of the fire was a small pot that brewed the most delicious soup the kunoichi has ever smelled. A blanket was wrapped around her slender body for warmth as she sat on her cushioned sleeping-mat.

"I didn't know you could cook," she smiled looking up at her senpai.

He smiled under his mask, "I've been cooking all my meals since I was ten, I had to learn somehow."

She nodded, "You mentioned your dad today... earlier. You never mentioned him before."

"I don't really like talking about him," he sighed, and Ayame expected him to stop talking, but she looked up at him when he continued, "My mother died when I was very young, I barely knew her. So my father raised me, he was a great man, supposedly the top ninja in his rank. He was intelligent, strong, and brave. So brave that one day he went against all the rules known to ninja worldwide," he paused, "Since the start of time, the number one rule for all ninja was to _always,_under any circumstance, complete the mission. The mission always came first, always. But one night, while my dad was on a mission, he failed to complete the mission to help a comrade. This was truly unheard of at the time."

Ayame was silent, as she peered over to her sensei with the glowing fire in between them.

He continued, "My father was shuned from the village because of what he did. From everyone else's eyes, my father was scum. _How dare he save his teammate instead of completing the mission?_He grew so depressed that he eventually killed himself," he rubbed his face with his hand, "It was a hard time for me, I was young but I learned how to be independent. I graduated from the academy at an extremely young age, and was the youngest ninja on an ANBU squad."

Goosebumps covered Ayame's face as her eyes never left his face.

"Since the day I became a ninja, I swore that I would always follow the ninja code strictly. I wouldn't make the same mistake my father made, I would make an actual name for myself. I didn't want to be known as the White Fang's son. I wanted to be known for all the great achievements I made," he gulped, "That was all before I met Obito- your brother,. When Obito and I were placed on he same team, I never paid any mind to him. He was just another person standing in my way, just someone who would never achieve the things that I did. But I was wrong, I was so wrong. Obito taught me more about life in just one day, then I ever learned in my whole life."

A single tear fell from her eye as she watched Kakashi.

"He abandoned the mission... to save me. And at that moment, I realized that what I have been doing and thinking all along was wrong. It was all a lie. Obito taught me that your comrades come first- no matter what. I just wish... I wish that I could have been the one to save _him_."

Ayame left her spot and warm blanket as she walked over to Kakashi, "You did save him... you gave him a friend. That's all he ever wanted, to be friends with you. And I know that he's out there somewhere, watching us," she stroked his silver headband where they both knew the sharingan eye was under, "He'll always be with us."

Something stirred inside of Kakashi as he leaned closer to Ayame, wanting to feel the embrace of both her words and her body. He was wanted to hold her tightly against his body and feel the smoothness of her skin under his. His one visible eye peered back and forth between her two dark ones.

She pulled away from him as her stomach growled, and she swallowed nervously, hoping that the soup would be ready soon.


	12. The Famous Copy Ninja

The Famous Copy Ninja

* * *

Unlike her hometown and other villages she visited, Ayame noticed that there weren't guards at the front interrogating strangers and visitors. Instead, the secluded and hidden village had a set of tall gates that opened for anyone who could find it. It only took Kakashi a few minutes to pinpoint the location, since he had been here many times before.

And as always, he was currently rambling on as he led the Uchiha girl through the wooden gates and into the small village. The sun had just risen, and the air was still chilly, which was expected from a village surrounded by waterfalls. The air temperature was typically lower than other places.

"There's this great tea shop just over here, if I can remember correctl-"

The jounin was suddenly cut off by a group of schoolboys that were passing by, with backpacks hanging sloppily from their shoulders, "IS THAT THE COPY NINJA FROM KONOHAGAKURE?"

"IT IS THE COPY NINJA!" Another one yelled.

"HEY MISTER, CAN I HAVE YOUR AUTOGRAPH?"

The boys were beginning to run towards him, shoveling writing utensils out of their bags, ready for their autographs. Other villagers were stopping also, and looking over to see what all the commotion was about. It all happened so fast, and Ayame blinked twice to fully comprehend the scene displayed in front of her.

One of the boys had a chubby face, sausage-like fingers and a mesmerized look in his eyes. As if he was meeting his hero… his idol… for the first time. There was something about the gleam in his eye that made Ayame's stomach churn. _Was Kakashi really this important? Was he really this famous in other countries and villages?_ She had heard rumors when she was younger- about all the people he killed and the achievements he reached at a young age… but not this.

Still confused, but trying to understand the situation, Ayame covered her mouth, chuckling into her palm silently. She could feel Kakashi blush from the embarrassment and attention; something he wasn't used to in Konoha. Back home, people knew how powerful he was, they just didn't make a big deal about it like this.

"I guess you're like some kind of hero, huh? You got a lot of fans here, senpai," She mentioned, noticing more kids running towards them. Kakashi glared down at her, but continued to wave "hello" at the sea of children that were piling around his legs.

"Okay guys, you don't want to be late for school now," Kakashi announced after a few minutes, "Your education is very important." His visible eye was crinkled into the infamous smiling arch that Ayame was so used to, as he waved goodbye to all the kids. They were now showing off their autographs to each other, feeling like they just met their favorite celebrity.

"We should really find that tea shop before someone kidnaps me," Kakashi muttered, half-jokingly, "I think I can see it from here," he pointed towards a small building down the street and walked faster than Ayame ever seen him walk before.

It was a small, quaint and cute place. The tables and chairs were made of wood, and were lined up in separate tables, some leaning against walls, and others in the middle of the room. The Uchiha girl took a seat in the corner of the room, while Kakashi went up and ordered two cups of tea and some breakfast before joining her at the table.

"So, when were you going to tell me that you were such a celebrity around here?"

The copy ninja shook his head in embarrassment, "I completely forgot. A couple years ago, I performed a mission for this town; I saved their leader from a life or death situation. He had gotten kidnapped by some rouge ninja, and I rescued him safely and brought him back home. Apparently his town is so attached to him, that I became some sort if _hero_ in their eyes. It wasn't as weird at first," he paused, remembering the past events, "Everyone was so generous to me at the beginning, and I kind of enjoyed it. They gave me free food, free room service," his voice dropped down to a whisper, "They even offered me some hookers, apparently the best ones in town, which was the only thing I declined from them."

Ayame's cheeks flushed as she imagined Kakashi on a bed with hookers, dressed in nothing but fishnet stockings and high heels, surrounding him. Something stirred in her chest, but she pushed it aside as a woman came over to their table, setting down a tray in front of them.

"Enjoy your meal, Hatake-san, all free of charge," the woman bowed.

"Oh that won't be necessary," Kakashi announced, digging through his pocket for money.

"Oh no, Hatake-san, were are informed that if you are to ever eat here, it would be free of charge," she informed, "Now enjoy your meal." The woman looked older, with a kind smile on her face, and her voice was soft.

After the woman left the table, Kakashi sunk in his seat, "I was okay with it the first day, but I think they're pushing this too far. I hate receiving so much free things; it makes me feel like owe them something in return. They might as well build a gold statue of me and display it in the middle of town."

"So is it like this _every _time you come here for a mission?"

"No, actually I always wear my ANBU mask to conceal my identity. I just completely forgot about it this time."

Just then, a crowd of giggles entered the small tea shop, Kakashi ducked his head, and mutter an "oh no" at the sight of the new guests. Ayame craned her neck around to get a good look at who just walked in. It was a group, of four or five women, each wearing short skirts and shirts that barely went passed their belly buttons. Their heels clicked on the wooden floor with every step they took towards their table.

They ended up sitting just a few feet away, and noticed Kakashi and Ayame sitting alone together.

Ayame gulped nervously, beginning to pick at the food in front of her. She was happy to be here, away from her crazy situation at home, but did she really want to spend the next few days under the radar with Kakashi and the special treatment he was getting? Free food was one thing, but what about the drunken sexy girls that were sending him googily eyes?

They began eyeing him up and down, whispering things to each other, giggling the whole time. "Hey big guy, are you looking for a good time?" One of them asked, completely ignoring the Uchiha girl who sat across from him.

Was Ayame oblivious to them?

The dark haired girl felt nauseous as she stood up from the table, no longer feeling hungry. "Excuse, I need to go vomit now," she announced, making her way towards a door that was marked _women._ She might have exaggerated about the whole _vomit_ thing, but she was really starting to feel sick around the sexual attention Kakashi was getting.

She pushed the door open to reveal a couple of stalls on one side of the room, and a couple mirrors and sinks on the other. She peered at her reflected in one of the mirrors, noticing how pale she became and how sick she felt at the idea of women ogling all over Kakashi.

Why was she feeling like this? Kakashi was just her trainer, her mentor, her senpai, her brother's friend, _her_ friend. A friend. That's all he was. Just a stupid freaking friend.

Then why did she feel like this when other women were showing their attraction to him? Did the leader of the village find out that Kakashi was here, and sent these hookers his way, or were women just naturally attracted to Kakashi wherever he went?

He was at liberty to be with anyone he wanted, even if that meant skanky little hookers like the ones who were undressing him with their eyes at the current moment.

He was just a friend to her, like Hitoshi, Iruka and Asuma.

But Ayame didn't feel this rage inside of her when Hitoshi was with Nori, or when Iruka was with Anko, or when Asuma was with Kurenai. What was this feeling..? Was it jealousy? No, no, no it couldn't be.

Ayame Uchiha was not _jealous_ of anyone.

The dark haired chuunin was an independent, strong woman who was confident in herself and in her feelings. Sure, she showed her emotions more than the normal kunoichi, but it was all part of being human. And not only was she human, but she was a teenage girl with growing hormones.

Right, hormones! Something that she could use to blame these growing and burning feelings on. She only felt this way about Kakashi because her budding hormones were interfering and getting in the way of what she was really thinking.

Feeling better about herself, she splashed some water on her face and eyed herself in the mirror once more before leaving the brightly lit bathroom.

Ayame hadn't even taken two steps before noticing a change in the previous seating arrangement. Three of the barely dressed women were sitting at the same table as Kakashi, feeling his muscles and commenting on the impressiveness of his biceps.

* * *

Kakashi began to stiffen and feel uncomfortable when he felt the women at the other table eyeing him up and down. He heard them whispering things to each other, and he wished that they would stop with the stupid giggling already. They sounded like a bunch of little girls trapped in used up, drugged up and half naked bodies.

"Hey big guy," one of them piped up, "Are you looking for a good time?"

A typical line from a typical prostitute. He ignored them, and instead looked towards Ayame, who held an indifferent expression on her face. She began to look flushed and stood up almost immediately, "Excuse me, I have to go vomit now," she announced.

Before he knew it, Kakashi found himself sitting by himself at the table, watching Ayame as she left and walking into the women's bathroom. Was she really sick and needed to vomit? Or was she exaggerating because of the current and uncomfortable scene that they were thrusted into?

"Finally got rid of her, huh?" One of the girls edged her way into Ayame's chair and Kakashi got a good look her face. She had a blond hair, bags under her eyes and wore too much lipstick. Her breath smelled of cigarette smoke and Kakashi was glad that his mask blocked off most of the odor. Another prostitute sneaked into the seat next to him and before he knew it, three or four girls were surrounding him.

"Excuse me, but I'm trying to have breakfast here," he spoke nonchalantly. Their half-naked bodies and _charm_ wouldn't work on him.

"How about I give you something better to eat?" One of them offered, rubbing her hand up and down the muscular part of his arm. Kakashi looked up at her in disgust, and felt relieved when he heard the bathroom door open and close.

Hearing the bathroom door slam close, Kakashi shot his head up at Ayame's form walking closer to the table. He could notice the pained, yet confused, expression on her face. He escaped the grasp of the long nailed, short skirted ladies and followed his teammate out of the tea shop. Apparently something upset her and caused her to just walk out without saying a word.

* * *

After buying some transportable food for the rest of the day, Kakashi and Ayame retreated back to the oasis that he had brought her to the night before. They both felt much more comfortable being out in the meadow than inside the village. The copy ninja couldn't stand the amount of attention he was receiving, and the Uchiha girl couldn't stand the thought of women draping themselves over him.

They hadn't mentioned the situation again, and had barely talked to each other since it happened.

The afternoon sun was hot and spring animals like birds, deer and rabbits were out in the meadow enjoying the weather. It was peaceful out here, and Ayame loved it.

Because of the heat, and glaring sun, Ayame removed her navy blue qipao that sported the Uchiha symbol in the back. Now she wore her regular black under-shorts and a plain white shirt that was fitted and formed to her body. Kakashi watched her as she stuffed the qipao in her bag, and noticed that he underclothes were tight to her petite body, like the soft pink dress she wore just two days ago.

He too felt the heat glaring on him and wiped off some of the sweat that collected at the bottom of his headband.

Ayame sat at the edge of the lake, dipping her feet into the cold water. She wanted nothing more than to remove all of her clothes and jump into the icy water. She knew that it would feel so relaxing against her boiling skin, but it would definitely be more than inappropriate since Kakashi was just no more than 20 feet away from her.

_Kakashi_.

She was still mad and upset from the scene at the tea shop with the prostitutes that had bombarded Kakashi with their big breasts and small waists. She wondered if he ignored them just because _she_ was there with him. If he was by himself, would he have gone with them? Would he have agreed to have _a good time?_ Suddenly angry with herself, Ayame stood up and turned around swiftly, unaware that the copy ninja was standing right behind her, and knocked him down, falling on top of him.

Her foot had slipped on a patch of wet grass and before she knew it, her body landed right atop of his.

She looked into his visible eye, never being this close to him before.

"Sorry, senpai," she muttered, attempting to push herself up and off of him.

But he stopped her and put a finger to her lips.

Her heart skipped a beat.

"Shh…" he started, and Ayame gulped at the intensity of their position, "Do you hear that?"

The Uchiha strained her ears for the slightest sound, but could only separate the sounds of the birds chirping and the water that was flowing. But suddenly, there was a shadow that moved between the trees in the distance, and Ayame could finally sense the chakra of two people.

Gulping once again, she dreaded what was about to come.


	13. Fighting & Sharingan

Fighting and Sharingan

* * *

Her foot had slipped on a patch of wet grass and before she knew it, her body landed right atop of his.

She looked into his visible eye, never being this close to him before.

"Sorry, senpai," she muttered, attempting to push herself up and off of him.

But he stopped her and put a finger to her lips.

Her heart skipped a beat.

"Shh…" he started, and Ayame gulped at the intensity of their position, "Do you hear that?"

The Uchiha strained her ears for the slightest sound, but could only separate the sounds of the birds chirping and the water that was flowing. But suddenly, there was a shadow that moved between the trees in the distance, and Ayame could finally sense the chakra of two people.

Gulping once again, she dreaded what was about to come.

Kakashi helped her up, finally, and she felt queasy as she attempted to stand up on both of her feet. She felt safer close to the jounin, lying upon his hard chest, she felt like nothing in the world could hurt her. But she was wrong.

So wrong.

_She was a ninja, which meant that she would always have enemies after her. She would always use her skills to protect herself, her loved ones and her village against anyone that caused harm. _

She kept replaying that mantra in her mind, while hiding behind Kakashi like a little coward. She hadn't reached chuunin level by just sitting on her behind eating potato chips, but she hadn't received it doing anything spectacular either. As a genin, she would always hide behind Hitoshi and Jiraiya-sensei's strength and Nori's beauty. She was never the best at anything; except failing.

Sometimes she felt that the only reason why the Hokage promoted her onto the chuunin level was because he felt _bad _ for her. She was the only one left of her age group, and her brother just _died_ . But Kakashi hadn't been training for these past couple months for no reason.

"Show yourselves, we already know you're there," Kakashi spoke loudly, and his voice echoed throughout the meadow.

First, we heard the sound of clapping, followed by two people emerging through the trees. It was a woman, and the source of the clapping was coming from her as she wore a smirk on her face and her hands collided with each other. Her hair was a deep burgundy color that hung loosely around her shoulders. She looked experienced, especially with the small cuts and scars that covered her face around her cheeks and forehead.

A tall, doofy looking man stood next to her. He was bald, with the exception of a patch of yellow hair at the top of his large head. He had two golden buck teeth sticking out between his lips as he wore a smirk that was identical to his partners.

The woman stopped clapping her hands, "Congratulations, you found us."

The Uchiha mentally smacked herself, realizing that she stuffed her weapon pouch in her bag when she removed her qipao earlier. They were definitely about to get into an altercation with these people, and Ayame stupidly got rid of her weapons.

"Why were you watching us?" Kakahsi's voice boomed, he stepped over, completely covering Ayame more protectively.

Was he doing it in a protective manner? Or did he feel like she was too weak and couldn't take care of herself? Would he have done that if he was with any other kunoichi like Anko or Kurenai? Did he see the dark haired girl as a weak little girl that couldn't fight her own battles?

The goofy looking ninja peered to the side of Kakashi's body, "I like your little girlfriend over here."

She scowled as he started walking closer, so she jumped a few steps back and Kakashi tried to cover her again but failed when the burgundy haired kunoichi threw a kunai at him, "Goro, don't do anything stupid like you always do, remember we need to keep her alive," she spoke in an icy and commanding tone.

The shrill of her voice rang throughout the meadow as _Goro_ kept pursuing Ayame further and further away from her senpai.

"Calm down Junko, I'm just having some fun," he announced.

Kakashi was already lifting up his headband, revealing his sharingan eye to his opponent as Ayame was led deeper into the meadow. Tired of stepping away from him, she stopped for a moment and threw a rock in his direction to throw him off.

He dodged it almost instantly, "You're going to have to try harder than that, sweetie. Are you even a ninja?" He ruffled his eyebrows at the lack of her weapons and combat attire. Ayame felt something inside of her burning, she hated being underestimated, especially when she _did_ feel weak and helpless.

She turned around, ignored him and continued creating distance between them without getting too far from the waterfall.

The truth was the she felt disgusted by this guy, all of his remarks made her lose her concentration. She knew she was already too far from Kakashi to receive any help from him. And she didn't notice how close Goro had gotten until he pulled her by her long dark hair.

"Where you going now, love?" He growled into her ear. She bit the arm that pulled on her hair, and he howled in pain. Throwing her on the floor, he stepped over her, holding a kunai to her neck, "You stupid bitch! I wasn't going to hurt you before, but now I'm not so sure about that."

This guy was just making her angrier and angrier with every word that he spoke and every move that he made. This was it. This was serious now. From the ground, Ayame swept her legs across his so that he tripped over and onto the dirt.

"The bigger they are, the harder they fall," she pointed out as the floor crumpled around his large body as he collided with the ground. The Uchiha then jumped up and away from him, running towards the lake that was no more than a couple feet away. As her feet touched the water, her hands moved into the motion of a jutsu, "Mizu Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Two identical water clones appeared by her side and ran over to Goro, who was now limping his way closer to her and the lake. The clones attempted to fight him off, but before she knew it, they poofed and melted into puddles of water that surrounded his feet. She had to think fast. What else could she possibly do without her kunai and shuriken?

He was too strong, and she didn't have any weapons to properly protect herself. What was all the training meant for? All those years of training with Jiraiya, and now these couple months with Kakashi? Was it all for nothing? Did she really possess no special powers at all?

For once, just this once, she wanted to feel _useful_ instead of feeling _useless_. She wanted to be able to something. Anything. She didn't want to have to wait around for Kakashi to save her, or for this guy to kill her.

Suddenly, a particular jutsu flashed into her mind.

No- she couldn't. For two reasons; one being that she didn't have nearly as much power as she would need to complete the jutsu. And two being that the jutsu… it would kill him. Was she really ready to _kill_ another human being? Was she ready to permanently stain her hands with his blood?

He charged towards her with a kunai at hand, an angry expression on his once goofy face. Suddenly, there was a loud yell, a cry of pain that boomed throughout the meadow. It was Kakashi.

Was he in danger? Was that lady really that powerful and that strong?

By the sound of his voice and the urgency of his yell, Kakashi was probably in no shape to come and rescue her from her own enemy. She could be the damsel in distress, not this time. She would have to take care of this guy on her own.

Gulping, and having no other choice, Ayame knew that she would have to use _that_ jutsu. It would be her only option of getting out alive and helping Kakashi, wherever he was. Making her decision, she summoned more water clones to distract Goro as she distanced herself a little further.

She stood right at the middle of the lake, standing upon the surface of the water, her eyes closed and her face peaceful and serene. She searched for the power within her, the power that she knew she had, but never accessed before. The strength was in her… she could almost grasp it… she was close…

Her eyes fluttered open, but instead of the usual dark colored orbs, her eyes were a fierce, fiery crimson shade that burned brightly and clashed against her pale flesh. Her body was tingling everywhere, from the top of her head, down to each fingertip and her toes. Her core was burning and her chakra level was higher than ever before.

Goro sensed the outburst of a sudden new chakra, and looked up, horrified. "T-The S-Sharingan," he whimpered, backing up slowly.

She glared at him angrily, Kakashi on her mind the whole time. The new rage within her body forced her fingers to perform an unfamiliar pattern as her voice was chanting a jutsu that she never used before.

"Deathly Ice Jutsu!"

Before she knew it, Goro was stiff in his spot, with a frozen expression on his large face. He dropped the kunai that was in his hand, and Ayame watched as it fell to the ground with a thump. But then she noticed that he wasn't looking _at _ her, but what was _behind_ her. She turned around too and gasped at the scene. Millions of icicles were emerging from the lake and was swarming over to Goro. He couldn't move, even if he wanted too, he was too mesmerized by the whole thing and possibly still shocked at the fact that this _little girl_ awakened her sharingan.

As if he wasn't expecting it, Goro's eyes widened as the icicles swarmed closer to him, ready to stab him on every inch of his body until he was dead. There was no backing out now, he was a goner. And Ayame didn't want to stick around and watch the bloody scene, so she back to the center of the meadow to look for Kakashi.

Behind her, she could hear the last gruesome screams that left Goro's mouth.

As she ran to the open field in search of her senpai, she noticed traces of blood that were smeared throughout the grass. Kunai, shuriken and poisoned needles were scattered all across the ground. As she jogged further, she noticed two bodies lying unconscious, both covered in blood.

"Kakashi," she choked.

Walking closer to his body, she felt the hot burning feeling of tears prickling her eyes remained in its new red state.


	14. Don't Ever Let Go

Don't Ever Let Go

* * *

Kakashi mentally cursed himself for letting that ridiculous fool distance Ayame away from him. Sure, he was in a really tight spot over here with a rather skilled kunoichi, but at least he could have kept an eye on Ayame if she was closer to him. He wanted and needed to know that she was safe; if she was too far from him, he wouldn't be able to tell. And to top it off, he noticed that her weapon pouch was missing.

Damn.

"Worrying about your little girlfriend over there?"

The copy ninja glared at the woman called Junko.

"Don't worry, Goro won't hurt her… too much. We need her alive anyway, on master's orders," she revealed, smirking again. Her burgundy hair shone in the sun every time she blocked a punch, a kick, a kunai. It's not that she was strong, Kakashi could handle strong, it's just that she was too fast. And his mind was already preoccupied with Ayame's safety, or lack of.

"You work for Orochimaru, don't you?"

The woman's eyes widened, not expecting Kakashi to know her master's name. The mission that she and Goro was sent on was _supposed_ to be confidential. She mentally cursed herself… she had said too much aloud already.

"I know all about Orochimaru's plan to kidnap Ayame for her sharingan," Kakashi admitted, and if it was even possible, Junko's eyes grew wider. _How did he know so much?_ He pinned her down to the ground when she let her guard off, "The truth is that Ayame is seventeen years old and has yet to awaken her sharingan. If it were to happen, it would have happened already."

It's not that Kakashi didn't believe in Ayame's strength or prowess, but what he said was true. When an Uchiha usually passed the age of sixteen without activating their sharingan, it was probably because they were born without it. Only a select few have enough chakra and energy to awaken it. Itachi and Obito were a part of the ones who were able to use the sharingan before the age of sixteen. Unfortunately for Ayame, her time may have passed.

Junko smirked and managed to get out of Kakashi's grip, "Well Orochimaru-sama has concocted a fool-proof method of how to activate her bloodline limit. So whether you like it or not, the girl is coming with us."

Kakashi lunged at her out of anger and despair. He didn't like the way she was talking about Ayame… she was talking about her as if she was just some kind of ginuea pig… some kind of useless experiment. She wasn't a labortary rat. She was a human being…. a kunoichi… a beautiful kunoichi… with long dark hair and smooth milky skin. Her radiant smile drifted through his mind as he blocked a couple poisonous needles thrown at him.

She was small and fragile, yet strong and independent. She was smart one minute and silly the next. She was hurt, like him, wounded by events of her past. From the death to her brother, to the shadow she always lived in when with her teammates. She understood the kind of pain you feel when you're all alone. The kind of pain you still feel when you're in a room full of people. The kind of pain that makes your family and friends feel like strangers. The same kind of pain that Kakashi felt every single day.

But not when he was with her.

She put a smile on his face. She gave a purpose to laugh, to live and to _love_.

What was this feeling that took over his chest and roared in his throat? Was it the same feeling he experienced every time he heard Itachi's name in the same sentence as hers? Was it the same feeling he got every time he noticed another man glancing in her direction? Was it because he wanted to protect her as an older brother? Or was it because he found himself falling for her harder each and every day?

No, he shook his head, no.

His arms and chest were bleeding from the weapons that were constantly being thrown at him. He knew that he could end this- and soon. He knew that he could just perform the all-too familiar hand signals and kill her with the chidori, his signature move. He could just do any number of jutsu that he mentally listed in his mind.

He _needed _to end this now.

He cried out loudly and wiped blood from the corner of his mouth after being punched swiftly in the center of his stomach. As he kneeled onto the floor for support, his head shot up instantly sensing something that he didn't notice before. It was a chakra, a very powerful chakra at that, and it wasn't there before.

Junko sensed it too, and a look of horror took over her face, fearing whatever came with that kind of chakra.

Kakashi also noticed that Ayame's own chakra had disappeared. Did something happen to her… was she _dead?_ She couldn't be. No. He shook his head and gulped loudly. He would have to finish this fight now, and head over to Ayame as soon as possible.

Performing the familiar hand gestures, before he knew it, a blue ball full of energy and lightning formed at the end of his hand. Junko didn't know what she had coming to her as he aimed right for the center of her abdomen. The chidori cut right into her, and Kakashi's arm came out the other side of body.

As he pulled his arm out, he took a couple steps back, but felt dizzy all of sudden. His vision was blurred and he felt cold all over.

_Chakra… too much chakr-_

His body hit the ground hard, crumpling the rocks and sand beneath him.

The last thing he remembered seeing was two gleaming red eyes peering into his as his mind drifted away to an unknown territory.

Ayame had only learned a couple of healing jutsu in the past few years, but it wasn't enough. It wasn't nearly enough. She kneeled in front of Kakashi's unconscious body, tears dripping down her stained face. His eyes were shut and blood trickled down from his mask and down to his chin. She lifted his shirt up and immediately did her best at tending to the interior wounds that bruised him from the inside.

Her hands were glowing green as she tried her best a healing jutsu. It was no use though, as she racked her brains, trying to remember all of the lessons she had on healing. It was so long ago. Nori and Hitoshi were always good at everything… she was _always_ the slacker. She would always fool around while the team was training and practicing. She never took any of it seriously in the past, so what could she possibly do now?

She couldn't just let Kakashi die.

"Kakashi, wake up, please," she whispered, wiping the blood from his mouth, "Please don't leave me," she sobbed, "Please don't leave me like Obito did. Please, you're the only one who truly understands me… I need you."

She bent her head down in his chest, giving up on the healing jutsu. She could start to feel her chakra draining anyway. She felt weaker and weaker with every long second that ticked by and it was to the point where she couldn't even perform a jutsu anymore.

* * *

Ayame's eyes ruffled as she peered at her surroundings under heavy eyelids. She sat up, discovering that every inch of her small body was sore, and scratched the top of head. From what she could feel, her hair was a massive mess and the taste of blood was still potent in her mouth.

The skies were dark and when her mind finally drifted back to reality, the recent events played over in her mind. She tried her best to get up off the ground, almost unaware of the warm blanket that was covering her body. "Kakashi?" She yelled through the meadow. The last thing that she could remember was killing Goro and finding Kakashi unconscious on the ground.

She managed to pull herself up and stand on her two feet.

"Kaka-"

"Stop yelling so loud, you'll disturb the sleeping animals."

Her heart swooned as she spotted the gray haired man near the lake, apparently collecting water in a canteen. She ran towards him, forgetting about the pain in her muscles and joints, and enveloped him in a tight hug. His canteen even tipped over, spilling onto the grass.

Kakashi hugged her back, even kissing the very top of her head. She didn't notice.

She was too ecstatic at the fact that Kakashi was _alive_, he was alive and well. He was walking, talking, hugging and breathing. He was okay, so she was going to be okay. She wouldn't know how to live, or even want to live, if Kakashi had turned out dead.

She squeezed him tighter, drying her tears on his hardened chest.

Finally she let him go, but her eyes never left him, "How long was I asleep? What happened to Junko and Goro?" she was surprised that she even remembered their names, "And… what's going to happen now? Why were they after me?"

"You were asleep for almost two days, I just woke up this morning. We were both exhausted and lost a lot of chakra. I know I usually knock out after using the chidori and sharingan simultaneously, but what I can't understand is why you fell unconscious…"

Ayame gulped and looked her reflection in the lucid water. The moon was right behind her, which provided enough light to see herself perfectly. She closed her eyes, and dug deep in her soul for the strange and powerful chakra that had took over her body during her fight with Goro. She opened her eyes, and peered at her reflection with new eyes.

Red eyes.

Kakashi felt the chakra, it was the same one he sensed during his fight with Junko. He never thought that the chakra would be coming from Ayame. He was so sure that it belonged to a third enemy, someone that even Junko was afraid of, from the expression on her face. It still didn't make any sense to him. Why was his teammate emitting so much of this dark chakra?

Finally she turned around, and his eyes widened.

"You awa-"

"Yeah, I awakened the sharingan during the fight."

"B-But how?"

Kakashi was shocked, stunned even, at the fact that Ayame was able to activate her sharingan at such a later age in her life. This was something truly unheard of… something so strange, especially for a female. Males were always more dominant with the sharingan trait in the Uchiha bloodline than females.

He looked into her new eyes, noticing how pure and innocent they looked on her. If anything, they made her look more beautiful than she already was.

She closed her eyes again, and opened them once more to reveal her normal dark orbs.

"I was scared, and I didn't know what to do. I heard you scream in pain and I thought that you might be in trouble. I thought that you were going to die, so I just summoned all of this energy inside of me until I dug down into this chakra that I never felt before. It was dark and warm and made me lust after blood. It made me feel dangerous. I didn't like the feeling at all."

Kakashi peered at her with worry and concern. She looked so troubled, he just wanted to hold her in his arms again and tell her that everything was going to be okay.

"I killed that guy," she choked, "I don't want to kill people, Kakashi. I don't want to live with that guilt… the pain that I'm going to have to feel for the rest of my life… I don't want to feel that. And therefore, I don't want to use my sharingan. Not if it means that I'd be taking lives away from people."

"Ayame," he whispered, rubbing his hand along her arm, "You didn't kill an innocent man. You killed someone that was trying to kill _you._ You did yourself a favor… you _saved_ yourself. You just did what you had to do. There's nothing wrong with that. If it wasn't for your sharingan, you'd be dead right now."

She nodded, more tears trickling down her pale face. He pulled her to his chest in another hug and soothed her down by rubbing the top of her head. He would never let anything harm her ever again.


	15. You Belong With Me

You Belong With Me

* * *

The sound of crunching leaves and moist dirt was all that could be heard as Uchiha Ayame walked side by side next to her senpai, her trainer, her Kakashi. How long had she been wanting to say that out loud? Her Kakahsi… how long had she really felt this way about him? Was it when her wedding was called off? Or was it when she thought that he might be dead, and that she'd never get to be with him or talk to him ever again? Or maybe it was since day one. Since the first day he ever trained her…

All Ayame did know was that Nori was right all along… she did have feelings for her senpai. Feelings that should have never been there in the first place. She felt them every time he criticized her engagement to Itachi, she felt them when Sayura wanted to sleep with him, she definitely felt them when the group of prostitutes from Takigakure were draping themselves all over him. And she felt it again two nights ago when she had awoken up to find Kakashi alive and well.

She felt the familiar roaring in her chest as she ran and hugged him after believing that he was dead. She felt it as he held her and hugged her back. The way he acted around her after the altercation they had with Junko and Goro said it all… he was different around her. He wouldn't let her out of his sight. He lay beside her as she slept and often grasped her hand in his when they hunted for food in the deep forest.

But now they walked in complete silence with each other.

The shining silver moon was starting to peek through the dark and heavy clouds, "Looks like it's going to pour tonight," Kakashi declared, breaking the silence between them. Ayame didn't reply, she was too engrossed in her own thoughts to think of something to say. But it was true, she could feel the moisture in the atmosphere and knew that it wouldn't be too long until it started raining.

She guessed that it'll be another hour or two until the storm started.

Was everything going to change once they got back to the village? Was Kakashi going to act like the normal Kakashi, or was he going to be this new, caring Kakashi? The one who watched her at night, the one who made sure she was okay even when she was just a few feet away from him.

Their hands brushed against each other as they walked briskly and swiftly together in the dark.

The jounin ninja didn't know what else to say to break the silence. The past two days felt like a dream while they stayed and recovered in the meadow. The scenery was beautiful and peaceful, and he spent time with someone that he actually enjoyed being with. Unlike the times that he spent with his friends, he actually felt happy and liked his time with Ayame. He never had to force the smile that naturally came out, and the laughs were just so natural.

But now they were walking away from the dreamy meadow and towards the reality that was waiting for them at the village.

He didn't want to admit it, but Kakashi feared what was waiting for them at the village. Was Ayame going to act like the last few days didn't even happen? Was she going to fall back with her friends Nori and Hitoshi and possibly go back with Itachi?

The jounin exams were coming up… which meant that their training was going to be over. Their time spent together was going to end, and Kakashi would just be thrusted back to his friends Iruka and Asuma. He would just go back to his regular life as an ANBU agent and just go back to the assassination missions that he was used to.

How could he possibly feel this way about someone he just met? Sure, their personalities just clicked together whenever she was around, and they got a long so well, but it didn't change the fact that just a few months ago they barely knew each other.

All of these feelings that were going in and out of his body… they were just all too crazy and happening too fast. He just met her… he just met Ayame just a couple months ago. He could remember the day of their first training session, almost three months ago, a day that he could never forget. The look in her eyes when she realized that _he_ was her trainer. She was so disappointed that day.

That was back in March, it was now the ending of June.

But so much had changed since then. Not only had the weather and climate changed, but everything around them aswell. They trained together every single day. They saw each other early in the morning, and he watched her go home every night (as requested by the Hokage). They went out on missions together to different villages, they slept in the same bed before, they ate at restaurants together, and they fought enemies side by side.

He couldn't let her out of his life now.

Not now, since Orochimaru was still hot on her trail and her life could be in danger. If she didn't want to be in his life after the jounin exams, he would have to accept that. But there was no way that he would stop keeping tabs on her, not until Orochimaru was dead.

"What's on your mind?" She finally piped up and Kakashi was drawn back to reality. So many different things were going on in his mind but the sound of her voice brought him back instantly. She looped her pinky with his, "I can tell that something's bothering you."

How did she know him so well?

"I'm just wondering how things are going to be when we get back home," he admitted. And his chest felt lighter as the words left his mouth, never regretting any of them. He wanted to be honest with her. She deserved his honesty.

"What do you mean?" Her eyebrows ruffled, and he smiled on the inside because he loved when she did that. Sometimes she was just so beautiful and she didn't even know it.

Kakashi sighed, and suddenly felt silly saying this out loud, "When we get back to Konoha, and you take the jounin exams, is everything going to go back to normal? Are we just going to avoid each other and pretend like we don't know each other?"

Ayame stopped dead in her tracks. Was he really thinking about this the whole time?

"Kakashi, if you think I'm just using you to get a good mark on the jounin exams, you're wrong. At first all I needed was a trainer, but after a few weeks I realized that you were so much more than that. You turned into someone that I could talk to. You turned into someone that could relate to me, and understand me. And I didn't have anyone like that in my life, so when the jounin exams are over, I'm not going to just throw you aside. You became a big part of my life over these past few months."

A warm blush crept up from her neck and engulfed her entire face after finishing her rather long monologue.

Kakashi raised his hand and brushed the side of her reddened face, "You are so beautiful."

If it was possible, he was sure that her face got redder.

But it was true; she had that classic beauty that was not common in girls and women her age. Most of them tried too hard with the push up bras and makeup, whereas Ayame was so natural and simple. She wasn't pretty, she was beautiful.

Ayame's heart skipped a beat. Did he really just call her beautiful? And why was his hand still resting on her cheek?

"I'm sorry, that was inappropriate of me," he whispered, retrieving his hand.

But before he could pull his hand away completely, she grabbed it and held it close to her, "Don't be sorry."

Kakashi gulped, "Ayame, you're not like any other girl I have ever met. You're so different, and I think that's why I was attracted to you in the first place. At first I thought I was just protective of you because you were supposed to be like a little sister to me. But that didn't explain the feelings I got every time I saw you and Itachi together. Every time I heard his name I wanted to punch something. I didn't want you to spend the rest of your life with someone like him."

"You were jealous?" Ayame rose an eyebrow at him, and she felt her face get warm again.

"Jealousy _is_ an ugly thing."

"Well then you know how I felt when we were around that skank Sayura and that group of hookers from Taki," she gagged, "I had to watch from afar as they draped themselves all over you. How do you think _I _felt?"

Kakashi shook his head, "But those girls didn't mean anything to me, I swear. Girls like that may have attracted me when I was sixteen, but now that I'm older I want something more from life_._"

But then something just hit him like a ton of bricks.

Ayame was only seventeen years old and he was twenty. How was that ever going to work? What would her parents think? How would people in the village react? To be honest the age distance wasn't that far, it was just the fact of how experienced he was and how inexperienced she was.

"You have that look again," Ayame noted, "And I know what you're thinking, but I'm turning eighteen tomorrow." Although the skies were so dark she was almost sure it was passed midnight already. She was technically. by this time, eighteen years old at the moment.

"It's not _only _about age, Ayame," he spoke, "It's also about the fact that I'm so much more experienced than you are. I'd feel like I'm taking advantage of you or something. What would your family think? What would your friends think?"

"Can you stop worrying about what other people are going to think? For once, just follow your heart and do what you want to do."

Without thinking twice about, Kakashi swooped down, cupped Ayame's chin into his hands and kissed her full on the mouth. It happened so fast, and the Uchiha barely had any time to register everything in her brain. All she knew was that his lips were soft through the mask and his grip on her was soft and gentle.

It was nothing like the kiss she shared with Itachi.

He released her face from his and stepped back a little. "Ayame, there are so many reasons why we shouldn't be together, but I care about you too much to just ignore my feelings. I know that we just met a couple months ago, and we barely know each other, but I feel like I've known you my whole life."

"I feel the same way, Kakashi," Her eyes never left his, "When I'm with you, I feel like I'm a completely different person. I feel safe and as if nothing could hurt me."

"Then let's go home," he held out his hand towards her, "Together."


	16. Murder Is The New Plague

Murder Is The New Plague

* * *

A million different things were racing through Ayame's mind at once as she gripped onto Kakashi's hand tightly. They walked through the gates of Konoha, waving towards the sleeping guard and into the village swiftly. The skies were still dark and their clothes were soaked from the massive rain fall that just ended minutes ago. As they walked through the streets, they noticed how the town of Konoha was consumed completely within the darkness.

She tried not to think about her parent's reaction when they find out that she ditched Itachi for Kakashi. Well, it was her mother that she was most worried about. She knew how her mother felt about him… it was bad enough that she didn't want her daughter to be training with him. How would she feel when her daughter would start dating him?

Is that what they were going to do now? Date? Were they going to be boyfriend/girlfriend now? A couple? Ayame shook her head side to side. She was way too tired to be thinking about the little details right now. She would worry about that kind of stuff tomorrow, once she got a good night's sleep.

The copy ninja walked her to the front of the Uchiha compound, "You should go home and rest," he whispered, "I'll report to the Hokage's office, okay? And I'll see you tomorrow morning at our regular training spot," He released her hand in the process, but engulfed her in a tight hug. He kissed the top of her head, finally feeling like he might get what he actually wants in life. Ayame nodded her head in agreement, wanting nothing more than to lay on her nice warm bed.

So they went their separate ways after one last kiss.

Ayame pulled her clothes tighter to her body as Kakashi watched her, making sure she turned the corner to her house safely. When she was in front of her house, he disappeared into the night and headed towards the Hokage's building. As the Uchiha girl walked up the steps to her house, a strong gust of wind blew at her, making her take a few steps backwards. Her skinny frame almost followed the flow of the dancing leaves behind her.

Something was wrong, and she could feel it as she came closer to her front door. Ayame couldn't remember the last time the Uchiha compound was so quiet and deserted on a Friday night. She just had that strong, unusual chill creeping up in her bones.

She didn't like the feeling at all.

When she reached her front door, she hesitated for a moment, realizing that it was opened just a notch. The door creaked with every wind blowing it back and forth. She stepped over the threshold carefully, not wanting to make a sound in case anything _fishy _was going on. But all of the lights were off, and not even a peep was heard. "Ma..? Dad..? Are you guys home?" She didn't spot any of them as she walked through the kitchen. It was dark and the kunoichi could barely make out the furniture in the house. There was no sound, only the creak of the wooden floor with every step she took. A part of her hoped that her parents were safely in bed, sleeping the night away.

But her worst fears had come true as the flicked on the living room lights.

Gasping at the horrible scene laid out in front of her, Ayame screamed out in fright. Her parents were on the beige living room rug, faced down, in a puddle of deep crimson blood. After staring at the gruesome image, too shocked to move, Ayame finally found the energy to run out of the house as tears flew down her face. She pounded on the doors of her neighbors. Nobody answered. All of their houses resembled hers, with the lights off and the front door opened just a notch. "HELP! My parents… they need help!"

But no one came outside to help her.

Finally she walked the up the steps of another house, where she noticed there was dim light on. The door had been unlocked, and was pushed open from the force of her hand. She was still crying, and it was more than difficult for her to even think straight. Ayame stood quiet for a second before she walked in. She thought she heard someone else in the house… was that footsteps? "Hello..? Please, is someone there? I need help!" She stated, with her voice crackling. That's when she spotted him, sitting in the corner of the room, with his legs curled up in front of him. She gasped, "Sasuke? Is that you? Where are your parents? Where's Itachi?"

At the mention of his older brother's name, Sasuke yelled and covered his ears immediately. That's when she noticed the trail of blood on the tiled kitchen floor that led into the living room. She only guessed that the same massacre that was in her living room was here also. Running to the corner of the room, she grabbed little Sasuke in her arms and fled the house.

_What the hell was going on?_

Almost tripping on the stone steps, Ayame ran out of the house and toward the gate that led out of the compound. As she got closer, a dark figure dropped from a nearby tree and landed a few feet in front of her. All Ayame could see in the darkness was a pair of blood red eyes. "Itachi?" She cried out loud, holding Sasuke tighter to her.

His voice was deep and booming, "Ayame, where are you going?" He wore his ANBU uniform and his cat-like mask on the top of his head. There was long sword hanging in a case around his shoulders, it gleamed in the moonlight. Was he just getting home a mission? Or was he just leaving?

She cried out instantly, "To the Hokage's office! Itachi you have to help. Everyone… in the clan… Everyone's hurt! There's blood everywhere," Ayame pulled Sasuke tighter, if it was possible, so that his head was near her racing heartbeat. Clutching onto his small, navy blue shirt, tears began to fall from her eyes.

"You weren't supposed to be home for another day," he spoke simply.

"What?" she breathed.

"You were on a mission with _him_, right? You weren't supposed to come home until tomorrow," he repeated, "You weren't supposed to be home when this happened." Ayame couldn't even think straight. What was Itachi saying? Was he the cause for all of this mess? The death of her parents, the death of _his _parents? Did he seriously just take the life of all of these innocent people? His own clan?

"Itachi… what did you do?"

"It had to be done," he looked down, and without another word he disappeared into the night.

Ayame took this as an opportunity to run towards the Hokage's building. She would have to tell him everything, starting from the moment she walked through the gates of the Uchiha compound. She would have to recount the whole night… all of the gruesome things she witnessed… her dead parents on the living room floor, swimming in their own blood…

She ran as fast as she could, never looking back.

The girl ran into the building, completely oblivious to the guards that were outside, and ran straight up to the Sandaime's office. She twisted the doorknob roughly and threw herself into his warm and dimly lit office.

"Ayame, what in the world is going on?" The Third Hokage coughed, standing up from his desk.

Kakashi was standing in the middle of his office, obviously giving his elder the account of what had happened during their fake mission. The Hokage would probably be interested in the two rouge ninja that had attacked them that day in the meadow.

"Ayame..?" The Copy Ninja looked towards her and Sasuke.

Iruka was also standing in the corner of the office, holding a clipboard in hand.

"Hokage-sama," she started, and her voice started cracking, "Something terrible happened. The Uchiha compound… everyone is dead. There was blood everywhere," tears fell from her eyes as she pictured the bodies of her lifeless parents, "Itachi. He killed them all."

The look on his face was unreadable, as if he _knew_something like this would happen, "Iruka, gather up a group of medical nin and send them to the compound straight away," he turned to Kakashi, "I need you to gather a group of ANBU agents and start pursuing Itachi… he couldn't have gotten too far. Pakkun should be able to track his scent."

"Hai," the two men nodded simultaneously.

* * *

Kakashi gathered as much men as he could get his hands on. His face showed nothing more than worry as he jumped, side by side with his faithful pug Pakkun, from tree to tree. If what the Hokage said was true, Itachi shouldn't be too far. And if he caught up to him, he didn't think that he would hold himself back from killing him.

According to Ayame, everyone was dead.

Her parents, her family, her clan.

Everyone.

That bastard.

The image of Ayame's tear-stricken face would not leave his mind. It was stuck there and he kept replaying her choked up voice in his thoughts over and over again. She had suffered so much already with the death of her brother… now this?

This was going to change everything.

"He stopped," Pakkun announced, "He stopped running, he's waiting for us. Just another fifty feet away."

Kakashi squinted his eyes in the distance until he indeed saw the dark figure standing straight up in front of them. Was he really going to just give himself up? The copy ninja stopped in his tracks with Pakkun halting right beside him.

His voice was dripping with anger, "What did you do Itachi?"

"You might not understand today," his voice was soft and soothing, "But you will one day."

"Was this all just a stunt to prove how strong you are? To wipe out your whole clan? The whole Uchiha bloodline?"

"Out of everyone, you will understand one day. You will understand the reason why I had to do this," his blood red eyes still facing the ground, "Just promise you'll watch over Sasuke."

Kakashi was quiet. Shocked. Stunned.

"And Ayame, watch over her too."

And with a gust of wind, Itachi disappeared from the darkness completely.


	17. Into Time

Into Time; Three Years Later

(The ages are now: Ayame is 21, Kakashi is 24, Naruto and the gang are all 12, and Itachi would be 22)

* * *

Uchiha Ayame was never the type of person who would get angered easily, but being the guardian of a preteen boy was a whole different story. Banging on the bedroom door in front of her, she yelled out with all her might, "UCHIHA SASUKE, YOU ARE GOING TO BE LATE FOR SCHOOL!" But before she had the chance of another bang, the door opened slowly. Standing over the threshold was a twelve year old boy with pale skin, dark hair and an annoyed face.

"Do you ever listen to me? Yesterday I told you that since today is the last day of school, I don't have to go until 11 o'clock. Woman, it's only 9:30," Sasuke spoke in a monotone. The female racked her brains, and sadly did remember when he told her this. Shutting his room door, the kid retreated back into his solitude leaving Ayame feeling rather stupid in the hallway, muttering several apologies.

She was honestly having a hard time juggling everything lately. Taking care of a very unstable adolescent boy, paying the bills somehow with her ludicrous job, and to top it all, she was having the worst social life. She could count all of her current friends with one hand, excluding her thumb.

Sadly, Sasuke had more friends than she did.

Walking toward the front door, she threw on a pair of shoes and yelled out to Sasuke that she was going to work. But he was used to this, knowing that she often left around this time and came back around five o'clock with groceries for dinner. Basically, it had been their life for the past three years, and he was accustomed to it. He peered out of his window, watching Ayame leave their small apartment, that laid on top of Konoha's biggest supermarket.

Whenever she was by herself, it was hard not to think about how much her life had changed in the past few years. She went from being a goofy teenager to a responsible adult. Her biggest concern in the past was passing the Jounin exams, now her worries included going to work every day and providing enough food for her and Sasuke. She went from performing D rank and C rank missions to taking a full time job at the hospital, hanging up her kunais and shuriken forever.

Ayame had turned eighteen on the night of her clan's massacre. And on that same night, she vowed that she would take care of Sasuke as if he were her own brother. Her own flesh and blood. She vowed that she would protect him, provide for him, feed him, cloth him and give him a place to feel safe every day. She promised to give him a place that he could call home again. Because deep down, that's what she really needed too.

As she walked into the hospital, her white shoes clanked on the porcelain tiles. Her front desk job was stable, and it paid more than the few missions she did each month. She couldn't continue with being a kunoichi, because it meant that she wouldn't be able to stay home with Sasuke. To take him to school… cook dinner for him every night… make sure all of his homework was ready for the next morning…

She sacrificed a lot, but every single thing was worth it.

Taking a seat at her desk she fixed a stack of papers on her right, and straightened a couple picture frames on the left. One picture was of her with her parents and Obito sometime six years ago, another picture was of Nori and Hitoshi on their wedding day last summer, and the last picture was of Sasuke's 12th birthday last month with frosting on his nose.

Ayame twisted her long dark hair up in a pair of chopsticks that had been laying around on the desk. It was nearly ten o'clock and there had been no patients in all morning, from the looks of the deserted waiting room. A couple medical nin walked from the entrance to the examining rooms, waving and smiling towards Ayame as they passed by. Just as she thought she was getting away with having nothing to do today, the entrance door opened and the woman heard footsteps coming into the room.

She looked up to see a tall, built man wearing a bright green jumpsuit and orange leg warmers. His hair was in a ridiculous style and his face was round and happy.

"Gai?" Ayame exclaimed as she stood up to hug her old friend, "What are you doing here?"

The man returned the hug, let go, and put a thumbs up at her, "I'm here for my annual check-up with the doctor. You know how I like to keep myself in shape and healthy," he winked and Ayame smiled.

She hadn't seen Gai, or any of her other friends, for a long time. It's not that she didn't want to hang out with them or catch up with the latest gossip or anything. It was just that she was so busy with her job and spending time with Sasuke. She barely had any time for herself, regardless of other people.

"You know Ayame, the gang really misses you," he admitted, leaning against her desk, "You should come by the bar tonight, we'll all be there."

The woman chewed on her lip, "Oh, I couldn't. I wouldn't want to trespass or anything. After all I'm sure everyone had forgotten all about me anyway," She replied, looking down at her stack of papers. It's not that she didn't miss Iruka and Kurenai and everyone else… it was just that she was scared that she might bump into a _certain_man.

"Nonsense, Ayame. You were always one to decline offers. You are always welcomed to hang out with us. I promise you that no one has forgotten about you. If anything , Anko and Kurenai wish they had another female in the group," he announced, "I hope you change your mind."

Suddenly, his doctor came out into the waiting room, announcing that he was ready to be seen. Gai smiled one last time, waving towards Ayame with a pleading look. His big round eyes were almost begging her to go through with the plans for tonight.

Her hands covered her face, as she sighed into them. Did she even have anything to wear?

Slamming the front door behind her, Ayame dropped her keys on the kitchen table and slipped of her shoes, groaning the whole time. She was sure that her hair resembled that of a troll and all of her limbs ached. Just another hard day at work.

"Sasuke, are you home?"

There was a loud bang from somewhere in the distance, followed by an "Ow, damnit!" and Sasuke's door opened slowly. He emerged out of his room and into the brightly lit kitchen, holding a hand up to his forehead covering a visible red bump. His annoyed face looked even angrier as he leaned against the tiled counter.

"Are you okay," Ayame attempted to stifle in a laugh.

Sasuke groaned, "Yeah, I just fell off my bed."

"Well, how was your last day of school? Did you meet your new team and sensei?" Ayame smiled enthusiastically, eager to hear about Sasuke's day. She remembered her own as if it were just yesterday. She remembered being so ecstatic when she was grouped up with her already best friends Hitoshi and Nori. But she was even more happy when she found out that Jiraiya, one of the legendary sannin, was her sensei.

She was disappointed, however, when she discovered how much of a pervert he was.

Sasuke grimaced, thinking about his thoughts from earlier today, as Ayame began preparing dinner.

"Well, when Iruka-sensei announced who my team members were, I wanted to kill something. He grouped me with that annoying pink haired girl and the even more annoying blond kid," he explained.

Ayame shook her head as she began pulling ingredients out of the cabinet.

"You mean Haruno Sakura and Uzumaki Naruto?" Ayame knew the names of almost everyone at the academy since she often had to review their files at work all the time.

Sasuke nodded and continued, "So after all the other teams left with their senseis, we were the last group waiting in the classroom. This guy had us waiting for almost two hours. His name is-"

"-Hatake Kakashi," Ayame cut him off.

Sasuke looked up at her, "Yeah, how'd you know?"

"Because he's always late," Ayame sighed. A warm feeling crept up her neck as images of the certain gray haired ninja invaded her mind. Of course she saw him around town here and there, but she would always avoid eye contact with him. Everything between them was just awkward after the whole Uchiha massacre. Nobody knew about the kiss that they shared that night, and from what she could tell, he didn't want anyone to know about it.

Changing the subject, Ayame forced a smile on her face, "So, I was invited to go to the bar tonight with some friends."

"Hmph," he crossed his arms over his shoulders, "You have friends?"

Ayame shrugged, "I don't know. I guess. Do you think I should go?"

She turned to look at Sasuke who was still leaning on the counter with his 'I really don't care' look. Groaning, she held her face in her hands, "Even if I do go, I don't have anything to weeeear," she muffled through her pale fingers.

"How 'bout I finish dinner, and you can go find something to _weeeear_?" Sasuke offered, grabbing a pot from the cabinet. The woman smiled, kissed him on the cheek, and stalked off to her bedroom. She was about to raid her entire closet.

The boy watched as she walked away happily, and he was glad for it. He was young, but he was smart and mature for his age. He knew that she had sacrificed a lot from her life when she decided to raise him. She gave up her life as a kunoichi in order to provide for him and take care of him.

He respected that.

And therefore, he thought she deserved a night out.


	18. You Again

Hatake Kakashi had not been acting like his usual self for the past three years. Instead- he was acting more like the broody person he used to be many years ago. He didn't want to hang out with his friends, he wasn't interested in any of the women in town, and all he wanted to do was complete missions. Missions after missions gave him no time to think about his life- it kept him so busy that he didn't have any time to think.

He didn't want to think.

His savings account was bulging with money from all the tasks he completed, but he never spent more than he needed to. He didn't have a family to support or someone to spend his time and money on. He didn't have children, or a wife, or spare time to hang out with friends. His bed had been practically unslept in for the past few years and he couldn't remember the last time he cooked something in his apartment.

And it was all because he was still stuck on this one girl who changed his life.

Kakashi still kept tabs on her when he could. The Hokage never wanted him to stop watching her, especially once she activated her sharingan. So whenever he could, he would watch her as she walked home from work or when she took random walks in the moonlit nighttime.

They had stopped talking to each other for the past three years.

But Ayame's safety was still a mission that he had to complete. From what he knew, Orochimaru was still alive and his goal was still to capture the sharingan. Granted, he didn't know that Ayame's sharingan had been activated, but that didn't stop him from trying to pursue her. Once in a while he would actually catch some kind of rouge ninja, working for Orochimaru, sneaking around Ayame's apartment.

He would get rid of them in a minute and report it to the Hokage immediatley.

He lounged on the top of a tree, facing Ayame's kitchen window, holding out his little orange book. His visible eye darted between the pages, getting lost in the perverted dialogue and pictures. But he couldn't stay too long tonight, since it was Anko's birthday and Gai had practically forced him into agreeing to stop by the bar. Iruka even persuaded the Hokage to give the Copy Ninja a night off.

Looking up at the window, he could see Ayame and Sasuke in the kitchen. They were talking and laughing- the looked happy.

A few minutes later the kitchen light was shut off and Kakashi heard the sound of the apartment door opening. Seconds later, Ayame appeared on the sidewalk, striding down towards town. She was wearing a knee length burgundy dress that barely covered her shoulders, and her long dark hair was flowing behind her beautifully. Her pale skin glistened in the moonlight.

Where was she going at a time like this? And why was she all dressed up?

Too engrossed in staring at the girl, Kakashi lost his balance in the tree, slipped on a wet branch and fell to the ground. His body collided with the hard dirt that was under him and he groaned loudly. Standing up, he rubbed his back, gripped onto his book with the other hand. A flush came over him, "Damnit," he muttered under his breath.

He could feel the Uchiha girl's gaze on him.

Ayame stopped in her tracks, squinted her eyes in the darkness and came a little closer, "Sir, are you oka-" She paused when she noticed who it was; Tall, spikey hair, navy blue mask. She placed her hands on her hips, "Kakashi? Is there any reason why you were in a tree next to my apartment?" Her eyebrow quirked upward as she felt butterflies in her stomach. When was the last time she even spoke to him?

"Well, I just... uh, I um..."

He couldn't tell her about the mission that the Hokage put him on almost three and a half years ago. No way- she would freak out if he told her that he had been watching her all these years. But then what could he say? What could he possibly say to make him _not_ sound like some kind of peeping Tom? He mentally cursed himself.

"Just forget it, I'm going to be late anyway," Ayame announced, turning and walking away.

He didn't know what he was doing, but he jogged towards her and caught up with where she was walking. "Where you headed?" He asked, shoving his hands deep within his pockets once he was next to her. His voice was deep as always, and he avoided eye contact with her.

She looked up at him from the side, "The bar. It's Anko's birthday."

He felt something warm in his chest, "Do you mind if we walk together? I'm headed there also." He smiled at her through his mask, and she smiled back with more of a confused look on her face.

"Sure, why not."

There was silence afterwards, and the sky became even darker than it already was.

For some reason, Ayame's mind became flooded with memories of her and Kakashi. Flashes of the first time they met, the first day he trained her and their first mission together became visible in her mind. She smiled to herself, "So it's finally Sasuke's turn, huh?"

"Hmm..?"

"He told me that you're his new sensei, and I'm sure you won't go easy on him."

Kakashi smiled under his mask, "Don't tell him, but I'm actually giving him and his group the bell test tomorrow."

Her eyes widened, hearing rumors about the famous Bell test that masked ninja always gave his students. Luckily he never made _her_ do it. She looked up at him from the side, "Well don't expect any teamwork from him, because he already hates his teammates."

He nodded, already knowing that they all disliked each other.

"So what made you become a sensei anyway? You once told me that looking after children was one thing you'd never want to do."

The jounin laughed, "Well I wanted to keep myself busy, and the Hokage refused to send me on missions every day of the week. He told me that I need to take breaks between each mission to recuperate and recover, but I didn't want to. So I figured the easiest way to keep myself busy would be to train genin right out of the academy."

"Interesting…"

"Wow, we're here already," he noticed, looking up. She looked up too and could see the front of the bar with the neon sign blinking in the darkness.

Kakashi turned the doorknob and held the door open for her as she walked in smoothly. Her arms turned warm instantly from the body heat inside, and when she inhaled she smelled alcohol mixed with sweat. She would seriously never understand why people loved to hang out here. She was always more of an outdoor girl; wanting to spend the day by a lake, or at the beach.

As she looked around, she noticed some familiar faces that she had seen around town, but there was one man sitting on a stool that she spotted instantly. He had long, spikey gray hair and a cup of liquor in hand. "Jiraiya-sensei!" she exclaimed, walking closer to him.

He looked up when he heard his name and smiled when Ayame came closer. He cleared his throat, "Huh? Oh hey kiddo, what are you doing in here?" Then he noticed Kakashi trailing behind casually, he winked over at him, "Oh, are you guys on a date or something?"

Her smile faded and her face turned tomato red while Kakashi began to chuckle. "Absolutely not, sensei. We're just here for Anko's birthday. That's all."

Jiraiya nodded at her, but turned to Kakashi and winked at him again. Ayame slapped her forehead in defeat, "You know what, we'll just be going now." She grasped the copy ninja's hand and dragged him to the back of the bar where she thought she heard Iruka's voice.

She spotted them, in a secluded table in the back. Iruka was being tackled by Anko, for some reason, and everyone else was laughing at him. "Hey guys, we made it," Kakashi announced, and sitting at the table was Kurenai and Asuma, along with Gai.

"Happy Birthday, Anko!" Ayame gave the birthday girl her present, as well as a quick hug. Iruka found this moment to sneak away from his abusive girlfriend, and sat as far away as possible. Asuma and Kurenai waved from their seats, and looked like a couple in love as they wrapped themselves in each other's arms.

But Gai stood up with his arms crossed over his chest, "So why did you guys come together? Is there something going on that we don't know about?"

The Uchiha girl's mouth opened and closed again. She didn't have anything to say, and she wouldn't know what to say anyway. Instead, she looked up at Kakashi hoping that he would know what to say.


	19. A Different Ayame

**[A/N]: Hey guyss this is pretty much a silly chapter. I hope you guys enjoy and i'll update again as soon as possible :)**

* * *

CHAPTER TWENTY: A Different Ayame

Kurenai and Asuma waved from their seats as Asuma put his arm around Kurenai's shoulders. Gai stood up in his seat, "What took you guys so long? And why are you both together?" His eyes narrowed as he looked back and forth between us.

Kakashi chuckled and scratched the back of his head while I smiled and answered Gai, "I was making dinner for Sasuke, he came home kind of late tonight. And when I got here, I bumped into Kakashi at the front," I lied badly.

"Yeah, and I was helping this old lady with her grocery bags. I couldn't rush her or anything, because then that would be rude," Kakashi stated and I almost choked. That was the worst lie ever. Why would an old lady have grocery bags at 9:00 at night? But it looked like Gai had a couple drinks, and didn't notice. He just shrugged and walked over to Iruka, who was rubbing a few bruises that Anko had given him. Talk about abuse relationships.

"Thanks for lying, Ayame. I really don't want to explain anything to Gai or anyone else for that matter," Kakashi whispered into my ear when everyone else was looking away and doing their own thing. I just shrugged and looked back at him. Lying was not something that I was proud of, but if it kept Gai off our backs, then hey, whatever, right?

It was weird to talk to Kakashi again. We had gone from being so close, to being nothing. The same night that we confessed our love for each other was the night that I came home to a dead family. After that we pretty much stopped talking and never mentioned anything again. Just because our relationship died doesn't mean that my feelings for him went away. If anything, seeing and talking to him was making the flame inside my heart burn again. Just like before.

"Yo, Ayame, want a drink?" Asuma called from the other side of the table. I hesitated for a minute, then nodded my head. If I'm going to have fun, I might as well do it right.

* * *

**Two Hours Later**

My eyesight was blurry and so were my words.

"Gai yo- I can- huh? Kurenai are you leaving already? But the party just started!" I hiccuped and stood up in my seat, knocking down the chair behind me. I reached over the table sloppily to hug Kurenai around the neck before she left the now empty bar hand in hand with Asuma. I giggled and hiccuped again as I plopped back down in my seat. I could see Gai's head on the bar table. He was knocked out. Iruka was helping a toppling and tumbling Anko stand up straight. Kakashi was sitting on the other side of me, next to Gai. He was sitting with a cup in his hand, poking at Gai's head. He seemed unaffected by the liquor that swirled in his little white porcelain cup.

I looked around at the empty bar.

"Hey, where did everyone go?" I asked, giggling once again.

"Everyone went home, and I think you should do the same," Iruka spoke up, "I think it's time that I take Anko home too. And I guess I'll bring Gai along, since his house is on the way."

Kakashi nodded and punched Gai in the head to wake him up.

Gai shot his head up as drool leaked down his chin. "IM UP, IM UP!" He yelled and looked around.

"C'mon Gai it's time to go," Iruka demanded as he balanced a very drunk Anko on his right arm and dragged Gai with his other, "Kakashi, are you going to bring Ayame home?"

Kakashi nodded once more as he came over to me, trying to lift me up out of my seat. I tumbled into his arms and spoke out, "Hey Anko, what was in that cakeee?"

Anko hiccuped, "Cake? Is it someone's birthday?"

Kakashi and Iruka both looked at each other and shook their heads as we left the bar. The cool air hit me as a rush of energy. Goosebumps were creeping up my arm as we walked the opposite way of Iruka, Anko and Gai.

Kakashi let go of my arm as we walked in silence. Well not complete silence, since I was humming a tune that was extremely off beat.

"Listen Kakashi, I just came here for Anko's birthday okay? Thanks for saving my butt earlier, but you don't have to pretend like your my friend anymore, okay?"

Kakashi didn't say anything back, so I just kept humming to break the silence.

The moon was out and shining more than ever. What time was it? 12? 1? 2? Sasuke must be worried... or maybe he's having a wild party with all of his friends. Wait- what am I thinking? Sasuke is 12 years old. He doesn't have wild parties or wild friends.

When Kakashi stopped out of nowhere, my forehead bumped into his back and I fell onto my butt. Pouting my lower lip, I looked up at Kakashi who turned around. "Kakashi, why did you stop out of nowhere?"

He shook his head and grabbed my arm to pull me up. "Ayame, we're at your apartment already. Where's your keys?"

My mouth formed an 'O' as I looked up, and sure enough the door that led to my apartment was there. The supermarket had been closed hours ago, but the kitchen light in my apartment was still on, which lit up the whole area.

As Kakashi helped me up to my feet, I started to feel dizzy and sick in my stomach. So I bent my head away from Kakashi, and vomited all over the concrete floor. I lifted my head and wiped my mouth with my hand, feeling very much relieved as well as embarrassed.

* * *

**[A/N]: I hope that this chapter made everyone laugh! I actually had fun writing this chapter, I just wanted to be silly with it. Don't forget to review with any feedback / or ideas for the next chapter! XOXOXOOOOO**


	20. Give Love A Try, One More Time

Chapter Twenty One: **Give Love A Try, One More Time.**

My eyes fluttered opened and closed slowly, as I felt a sharp pain in the side of my head. It felt like someone just banged my head with a steel pipe. Rolling onto the other side of my bed, I felt someone's body.

I sat up straight, in fear, as well as confusion.

After a whole night of drinking and wild partying, waking up to someone laying down next to you in bed is definitely not a good thing. Being cautious, and terrified, I pulled the sheets so fast and hard that the body fell to the floor on the other side of the bed.

"Ouch! What the hell was that for?" I heard a deep, familiar voice say. Hatake Kakashi stood up from the floor, holding the top of his head. He was shirtless, but had on his pants and of course, his navy blue signature mask. But my eyes traveled back to the middle of his body. His naked torso caught my gaze, and I couldn't keep my eyes off of him. He was extremely toned in all the right places. I couldn't tell if I was drooling or not.

"Hellooo!" Kakashi exclaimed, "Earth to Ayame," he snapped his fingers in front of my face to receive my undivided attention.

"Uh, huh?" I asked, looking up at his face. His gray hair was a sloppy, hot mess on the top of his head. He looked absolutely gorgeous, and I hope that this memory never leaves my head. Ever.

I cleared my throat and came back to reality, "HATAKE KAKASHI, WHAT ARE YOU DOING IN MY BED SHIRTLESS?"

He starting chuckling and winked in my direction, while leaning down to pick up his shirt. "You tell me, Ayame."

What the hell did he mean by that? I watched as he put his shirt on, and I suddenly wondered about what I must be wearing right now. I looked down at myself and noticed that I was only wearing a white tank top and navy blue cotton shorts. That were extremely short.

What the heck happened last night?

"Kakashi… what happened last night?" I asked, slowly, not really wanting to know the answer. He didn't answer, but only chuckled again. I was getting really frustrated, and I really just wanted to know what happened between us last night. I know I was really drunk, but Kakashi… Kakashi was perfectly sober. A part of me was mad at him, if he took advantage of me. And another part of me was wishing that I wasn't so drunk so I could remember what he did to me. It seems like something I would want to remember…

"I feel kind of disappointed that you don't remember…" Kakashi spoke slyly, while grinning innocently at me. I grunted frustratingly and left the bedroom, and I felt Kakashi walking behind me.

I made my way to the bathroom so I could brush my teeth and somehow refresh my memory. As I was about to open the bathroom door, someone opened it on the other side. Sasuke appeared at the doorway, walking out of the bathroom.

"Ayame…" He spoke slowly, "Are you ok-"

He was suddenly cutoff, and his eyes widened larger than I've ever seen them before in my life.

Kakashi cleared his throat behind me, "Uh, hey Sasuke. It's good to see you again, you come here often?"

Sasuke walked away awkwardly, "Um, yeah, I kind of live here."

After locking himself in his room, I could tell that Sasuke was extremely freaked out about seeing his new sensei with his guardian. I slapped my forehead because I felt so stupid. Then I remembered that I had the worst headache, and that only made it so much worse.

After we both used the bathroom and brushed our teeth, Kakashi and I sat the kitchen table, nibbling on some dry crackers and tea.

"Sooo…"

"Soo… are you going to tell me what happened last night? Or do I have to live with this stupid conscience in my head for the rest of my life?" I whispered in a rushed tone. I wanted to keep my voice down because Sasuke was just in the other room.

Kakashi shrugged, "What will I get in return if I tell you what happened?"

I pushed his arm in frustration as he chuckled at me once again. I mean, I wouldn't be necessarily mad if anything did happen between Kakashi and I last night, I'm just mad that I couldn't be sober to remember any of it.

I used to dream about nights that Kakashi and I would be alone together, doing nothing but just simply loving each other. But eventually I clarified to myself that it would only be a fantasy to me, an imagination.

I closed my eyes, and covered my face with my hands, "Okay… fine… but what do you want in return?" I looked up at him, bravely. Hopefully he didn't ask for anything out of proportion.

All Kakashi did was grin, and I was scared to find out what his answer was going to be.

* * *

**[A/N]: Oookay, so how did that chapter go? What is Kakashi going to ask of Ayame? And what do you think happened between them last night? Answer in the reviews! Let me know what you guys think!**

**Love youuuu x3**


	21. I Make Him Happy?

Chapter Twenty Two: **I Make Him Happy?**

"Go on a date with me."

I nearly choked on my steaming green tea, "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Go on a date with me. Tomorrow, at 7 o'clock. And I promise I'll tell you everything that happened last night."

I thought about it for a moment. I thought about Kakashi and I going out together… like a couple. After all, no one knew about our feelings for each other. The night that we confessed our love for each other was the same night of the Uchiha Massacre. And we decided after that, to never repeat what happened on our way home that night. I kept my end of the bargain, and I'm pretty sure he's done the same.

I nodded curtly, after thinking it all through. It couldn't be that bad, right?

* * *

A few hours after Kakashi left my apartment for his own, I started cleaning up. Sasuke came out of his room and tapped me on the shoulder. I turned around, "Hmm?"

"Is he gone?" Sasuke spoke in a monotone.

I grinned, "Yes Sasuke, Kakashi left a couple hours ago."

"Ugh, good. You know, I can never look at my sensei the same anymore because of you. Thanks for ruining my life Ayame," He grunted and crossed his arms over his chest.

"I leaned down and shuffled the hair on his head, "Oh Sasuke, don't worry, nothing happened between us," I lied. I didn't want Sasuke thinking that I was sleeping with his teacher… even though I wasn't too sure about it myself. "We are just two old friends that were catching up with each other," I reassured him.

Sasuke grunted again, but eventually got over it. "I'm going out for a walk, and I'll be home soon."

"Mmmmk, and be safe out there, and don't be out too late," I responded, as he walked out the door. "Ahh preteens," I sighed to myself.

* * *

The next morning, I had almost forgot about the whole 'date' thing, and realized that I had nothing to wear!

"Hmm… Nori will have something," I spoke out loud to myself. After telling Sasuke that I was leaving, I made my way over to Nori's house.

As I walked down the streets of Konoha, I noticed that summer was slowly transitioning into autumn. The leaves were starting to turn a dark auburn color, and the air had that certain chill. It wasn't cold, but it had that little chill, that little breeze.

I wasn't paying attention at all to where I was walking, since all I could focus on was the beautiful nature around me. That's why I didn't realize I bumped into someone until I fell on butt.

"Oh, I'm sorry Ayame," I heard a voice from above, "I was holding these boxes, and I couldn't see where I was going. I was just making a delivery for the Hokage. I'm so sorry for knocking you down, are you okay?"

I helped myself up, and brushed the back of my pants. I looked up to see Iruka, who was indeed holding up a stack of boxes. Sometimes I felt bad for him, on weekdays he was dealing with little annoying kids, and on weekends he was following every demand of the Hokage. At least he gets paid double…

"Iruka, I'm fine," I replied, "Do you need any help with those boxes?"

He shook his head and smiled at me anyway, "No thanks, but I do want to ask you something."

I tilted my head sideways, "Uh, sure. What is it?"

"I know it's none of my business… but Kakashi is my best friend, so I just had to ask, what did you do to him?" He asked, and my face changed completely. Did I do something wrong? Was Kakashi mad at me? We were fine yesterday…

Iruka must have noticed the look on my face because he suddenly exclaimed, "No, no, no! Ayame, I mean he's happier now. He's been acting so much happier after Anko's birthday party at the bar. And I figured that you had something to do with it."

I sigh of relief left my body. I grinned up at Iruka, "Well in that case, I have no idea what I did to him," I answered truthfully… and hopefully later on today I'll find out what exactly I did do to him!

* * *

"So, how is little Hitoshi junior?" I asked, while softly rubbing Nori's extremely large belly. She was a little more than eight months pregnant, and she looked like she was about to explode at any minute.

"Actually," she spoke, "I went to my appointment and the doctor said that there is a possibility that it might be a girl!"

My eyes lit up, "A girl? Aww a little Nori junior!" Nori laughed and smacked me playfully as I kept rubbing her belly like if she were Buddha.

"So, why do you need to borrow my clothes? Where are you going?" Nori asked, squinting her eyes in curiosity.

I recounted the whole Kakashi story to her, as we laid down on her bed.

"So, you woke up to a shirtless Kakashi sleeping next to you? And you expect nothing to happen?" Nori exclaimed sitting up, "And now you have to go on a date with him tonight to find out what exactly you guys did?"

"Pretty much."

"Oh man, I have the perfect outfit for you," Nori exclaimed once more, "And after he see's you in this, he'll want a repeat of the other night."

* * *

**[A/N]: So what do you guys think is going to happen between Kakashi and Ayame? And what kind of clothes do you think Nori has in mind for Ayame? And were you expecting her to be pregnant with Hitoshi's baby? Lol, reviews pleaseee!**

**XOXO**


	22. Silly Sasuke

I double checked myself in the mirror multiple times until I was sure that I looked good enough to be in public. My long dark hair was pinned back at the sides, and flowed down my back. I had a few hair in the front that fell like bangs over my left eye. My deep brown eyes gleamed an even lighter, amber color, from the low lamp in my bedroom.

Nori decided to dress me in a deep reddish burgundy dress that reached up to my knees. It wasn't skin tight, but it was flowing and looked summery. And that's what I liked most about it.

And against her permission, I wore black tights underneath the dress, just to feel more comfortable. The dress wasn't anything fancy, it did not have any decorations or shiny glitters. The only thing it had was two strings at the waist to tie at the back.

Slipping on my black flat shoes, I left my room. Makeup wasn't necessary, and I didn't want to look too dressed up or anything. I didn't know where Kakashi was taking me so I wanted to remain casual, and not too fancy.

I glanced at the time, and noticed that it was almost 7:45. "You look nice, where are you going?" I heard a voice behind me. It was Sasuke, who just came out of his room with a bag slung over his right shoulder.

"I have a date."

He peered at me, confused. "A date? You? Someone wants to date you?"

"Yes Sasuke… and he's actually forty five minutes late…" I admitted.

His eyes widened, and he smacked his forehead, "Please don't tell me that your going out with my sensei again," His voice had a tone of disbelief, but eventually got over it, "Well… anyway, I my teammate, the Uzumaki kid, invited me to stay over his house tonight."

"Aha, so you made friends?" I asked in a 'matter of fact' voice. Sasuke just shrugged, and before he opened the door to leave, there was knocking heard on the other side. Slowly, Sasuke opened the door, and on the other side stood the gray haired ninja.

"Hey there Sasuke," He ruffled the top of Sasuke's hair, and walked into the living room. Sasuke muttered something and left, closing the door behind himself. I watched as Kakashi took steps closer to me. He was wearing black pants with a dark gray, long sleeved shirt, and of course his mask that covered half of his face.

"You look nice," He complimented, putting his hands in his pockets.

"And you're fifty minutes late," I crossed my arms over my chest, to look looked a little taken back, "Well… you see… there was this woman giving birth on the stree-"

"It's okay Kakashi," I cut him off, "I'm not mad at you. I had a feeling you were going to be late anyway." I smiled at him, and he smiled back, looking relieved.

He walked toward the door, gesturing for us to leave.

After we left my apartment and walked down the main street of Konoha, I realized that I did not know where we were going. "Kakashi… where are we going?" I asked, looking up at him.

"It's a surprise," He spoke, and I just shrugged and nodded, not even complaining.

We passed the academy building, we walked by the ramen place, the bar that I had been to a couple nights before, and it brought back memories as we passed by. We reached the bridge that overlooked the flowing river, and that's when Kakashi asked for me to close my eyes.

"I don't want you to peek, okay?" He asked, and I nodded, with my hands covering my eyes.

He stood behind me, and placed his big hands on my small shoulders, and led me in the right direction. I felt my shoes squish over the feeling of grass and flowers. I smiled to myself, because I loved the feeling of Kakashi being behind me.

"Okay, we're here," He announced, and removed my hands from behind me, "Ta da!"

It took a couple seconds for my eyes to readjust to the image before me. He set up a small picnic next to the lake and right under the moon, that was slowly peeking out.

I wasn't able to say anything, I felt completely speechless. "Are you okay?" Kakashi asked, tapping my shoulder. I looked up at him, nodded, smiled, and laughed. He laughed too, and gestured for me to sit down with him.


	23. Confessions & Explainations

**[A/N]: Sorry for the wait guys! I hope this chapter is worth all the time you had to wait! ENJOY! **

* * *

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR: Confessions & Explainations

After finishing the sushi and rice snacks that Kakashi had prepared for them to share, Ayame leaned back on her elbows and enjoyed the view. The lake looked beautiful tonight, more gorgeous than she could have remembered.

The young female took off her sandals, and dipped her feet into the cool, refreshing water. Ripples were soon created from the slow interruption in the lake. "I almost forgot how much you loved water," Kakashi spoke, sitting up, resting his arms on his knees. He sat there and watched her play with the water, like if nothing else in the world could satisfy her.

"I don't know why," Ayame looked up at him, "But I feel so connected with water. With lakes, oceans, rivers, its all the same to me, even with rain. I just can't help but think that there's something special about it." He smiled at her, probably not even hearing the nonsense she was speaking. He leaned over and brushed her hand, wanting to hold it.

After a moment Ayame's eyes lowered, and she avoided eye contact with the gray haired ninja. "Kakashi... what are we doing?" Ayame asked innocently, "I mean, are we friends? Or are we something... more?" Eventually, she kept a straight stare at him, and tried to make eye contact, but Kakashi wasn't letting her. He continued his focus on her hand, that he was still brushing with his own.

He let go. "I don't know Ayame," he confessed, running his fingers through his light, messy hair. "After the whole 'incident' with your clan, I understood why you wanted some space, and why you needed to be alone. But those three years without you felt like a whole decade to me. It killed me inside to see you every morning and every night and not be able to talk to you."

Ayame jumped off the ground, and stared at Kakashi, who was still sitting on the grass. "What do you mean you saw me every morning and every night? I never saw you... and your apartment is on the other side of Konoha."

Standing up slowly, Kakashi's one visible eye looked stressed and saddened. "Listen Ayame... there's something I have to tell you," He continued, "The day before your engagement party, Orochimaru came to see me. He told me to hand over my sharingan eye to him within a week, or he'll take it himself. I told the Hokage about it that same night. The Hokage and I both agreed that you and Sasuke would need extra protection and security just incase Orochimaru tried to attack you guys."

Ayame crossed her arms over her chest, "But why not Itachi, or any of the other guys in the clan that had sharingan. My sharingan hadn't activated at the time."

"That's true, but knowing Orochimaru, he wouldn't target any of the experienced Uchiha ninjas. He wouldn't dare attack Itachi or his father, they would actually be a challenge. Orochimaru didn't even want to attack me, if he really wanted my eye, he would have taken it that same night. What he really wanted to do, was to scare me. He knew that we were starting to get close, so he wanted me to avoid you to protect you. Like, if I wasn't with you anymore, you won't be in danger.

But I did the opposite, I started watching over you even more. At night after I walked you home, I would stay close to your house and make sure you were asleep. Orochimaru must have noticed that I wasn't leaving your side, so he sent people to attack both of us. Do you remember that day in the Kirigakure, when we were attacked? I believed that they worked for Orochimaru." Kakashi explained, and with each word Ayame was hooked. She couldn't keep her eyes off of his one black pupil.

"But then my sharingan did activate..." Ayame spoke slowly.

"Right... but the only witnesses that saw your sharingan was me, and the two ninjas that attacked us. And they're dead... which means that I'm still the only person that knows. Unless you've told someone else." Kakashi stated.

Ayame thought about it quickly, then replied, "No... I've never told anyone else. I never even used it again after that day."

"And thats exactly why Orochimaru hasn't kidnapped you yet. He's waiting for you or Sasuke to activate it, since you're the only Uchihas left."

Trying to soak everything in, Ayame took a seat on the grass, but kept her gaze on the ninja in front of her. "I can't believe you've waited all this time to tell me. I had a right to know this three years ago!"

"I agree Ayame, but watching over you and Sasuke was a mission given by the Hokage. All missions are confidential, you know that."

"Yeah, but why are you telling me now? Aren't you still on a 'mission' to protect me? Was this date a mission too?" Ayame exclaimed, half angrily and half confused.

Kakashi sighed heavily, "No Ayame it's not like that. I'm just starting to believe that maybe you're more important to me than my job. I didn't watch you at night because I was getting paid or anything. I did it because I wanted you to be safe. And telling you about this mission could jeopardize my career, but I trust you more than I trust myself," He let out a deep breath of relief and continued, "And I still love you like I did three years ago, and possibly even more."


	24. Hi, You Must Be Kakashi's Girlfriend

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE: You Must Be Kakashi's Girlfriend

Getting off the warm comfortable bed reluctantly, Ayame made her way to the kitchen. Her and Kakashi had stayed out late last night without even noticing. "I guess I should make Sasuke some breakfast, huh?" Ayame spoke to herself as she looked through the cabinets for something to cook.

After taking out a few ingredients, Ayame yelled out loud, "Sasuke, it's time to wake up! Or else you'll be late for your training!" While she gave Sasuke a few minutes to get ready, she packed his lunch for him.

Ayame waited a few minutes, and noticed that there was no reply from the preteen boy.

Stomping toward the young boy's room, Ayame pounded on the door, "Sasuke Uchiha, wake up right now, or else I'm comin' in to wake you up myself!"

Still... no reply was heard.

Frustrated, Ayame turned the door knob and entered the bedroom. "Hm?" The room was dark, with the exception of one window in the far corner. There were no clothes scattered on the floor or anything, and his bed was made up perfectly. Sasuke's room looked exceptionally neat for a moody twelve year old boy.

The only thing that was missing in this room was... Sasuke. Noticing the clock upon his bedside table, Ayame nearly had a heart attack. The clock read 12:47 pm. It was afternoon already? Ayame knew she came home late last night... but she'd thought it was at least 6 or 7 in the morning.

"B-B-But he didn't even take his lunch with him..!" Ayame gasped as she left his room. Running to her own bedroom, she threw on some clothes and went back to the kitchen, grabbing the bag that contained Sasuke's lunch.

Ayame figured that she'd just drop off Sasuke's lunch to him at the training grounds.

* * *

Reaching the training grounds, Ayame slowed down in her tracks for a while. She was kind of confused since they were a lot of people on the training grounds where she knew Kakashi liked to practice. She spotted Asuma in the crowd, standing near three kids that seemed to be about Sasuke's age. The was one girl that had a long blonde ponytail, One little chubby boy, and the last boy had a short spiky ponytail. Ayame waved over to Asuma, and he lifted a large dark hand back at her, and smiled with a cigarette between his lips.

As Ayame continued to wave at Asuma, she didn't notice where she was walking until she bumped into someone. "Oh! Kurenai, hey!" She looked up at the woman she had walked into by mistake.

"Hey Ayame, did you come for the Chuunin exam announcements?" Kurenai asked, with her red eyes gleaming at Ayame playfully.

"Uh... sure," Ayame replied, not wanting to sound confused, even though she was.

Kurenai was also surrounded by three kids that were around Sasuke's age. The girl had dark blue hair, and huge Hyuuga eyes, just like Hitoshi. There were two boys, one of them carried a little white dog on his head, and the other had small circle sunglasses and beige coat that reached his nose. "I guess I'll see you later Kurenai," Ayame bid, and kept walking to find Sasuke.

Eventually, Ayame found a shady tree where Sasuke sat under with his two teammates. Kakashi was leaning against the tree, holding his little orange book in front of his face. "Hey Sasuke," She spoke.

"Ayame?" Sasuke stood up, "What the heck are you doing here?"

From the corner of her eye, she saw Kakashi look up, and put his Icha Icha Paradise book away in his pouch, and straightened his pose.

"You forgot your lunch at home, so I decided to bring it over to you," Ayame smiled brightly at the young kid, who was sitting beside a pink haired girl and the blonde kid that I recognized as Naruto.

"Oh, you must be Ayame," The pink haired girl stood up, "You're Kakashi-sensei's girlfriend, right?" She asked, tilting her head to the side, "He would not stop talking about you this mornin-"

"Okay Sakura, that's enough," Kakashi interrupted, smiling through his mask, and scratching the back of his head innocently.

Naruto then stood up also, "I'm Uzumaki Naruto, and I'm going to be the next Hokage! Believe it!"

Ayame chuckled, "So how does it feel to have Kakashi as a sensei? Is he working you guys too hard?," Ayame asked the three kids, "I remember when he used to train me."

All of their eyes widened, "Kakashi-sensei was your sensei too?" Naruto asked slowly, then turned to Kakashi, "Sensei, how old are you?"

"Baka, I wasn't her sensei, I was more like her senpai," Kakashi replied, and everyone else laughed.

Ayame tried to stop laughing, and turned to Kakashi, "So what is this thing anyway? Why are all these people here?"

"This is the first meeting for the chuunin exams," Kakashi answered, "There are four genin teams from Konoha that are participating this year. My team, Kurenai's team, Asuma's team, and Gai's team."

Ayame looked around, "Gai's team?" She asked, but eventually spotted Gai on the other side of the field in his bright green attire. And for a second, Ayame thought she was seeing double because she could have sworn that Gai had a clone standing next to him, only scrawnier, and smaller. There was also a girl next to him, with her hair styled in two buns. And she was talking to another Hyuuga kid with long hair and white eyes.

Ayame recognized him as Hyuuga Neji, he was Hitoshi's little brother. And from what Ayame heard, Neji is just as tough and competitive as Hitoshi.

Looking around the field brought back a lot memories for Ayame. Good memories. Well most of them were. Ayame missed being with Nori and Hitoshi all the time, and Jiraiya-sensei was always being crazy and silly. She missed those days.

"Ayame? Do you think I can talk to you alone, over here?" Kakashi asked, pointing over to another tree. Ayame nodded, and heard a Naruto wolf whistle behind her.

"Baka," Kakashi muttered before smacking him in the head, which made everyone laugh again.

Ayame walked over and away from kids, as Kakashi followed her. "So what's up?"

"I talked to the Hokage this morning," Kakashi admitted, "And I informed him that I told you about the mission."

Ayame's eyes widened, "Kakashi, the mission was confidential, you could lose your job! Why did you tell him?"

Kakashi shook his head and spoke, "Ayame it's fine, he understands. He said it's actually better that you know now. So when I'm not around, you could take extra precautions for yourself."

Ayame shrugged, "Yeah I guess."

"Oh, and I never finished our little bet," Kakashi grinned through his mask.

Ayame tilted her head, "What bet?"

"Remember? You went on a date with me last night so that I could tell you what we did together in bed three nights ago?" Kakashi reminded her.

"Oh yeah, so what did happen?" She asked, placing her hands on her hips, and walking closer to the gray haired ninja.

Kakashi's smile grew from behind his mask.

"Nothing... absolutely nothing. We just happened to fall asleep on the same bed."

* * *

**Yay Congratulations to Kelly! I think this is my longest chapter... I'm not too sure though. Anyway I loved writing this chapter for some reason, it brought back memories from when I used to read the manga and watch the show. **

**I hope everyone enjoyed this chapter :)**

**In your reviews and/or messages, please write what YOU want to see in the next chapter. I'm letting my readers choose.**

**So make sure you send a review or message, and i'll mention your name in the next chapter!  
**


	25. Surprise Surprise

CHAPTER TWENTY SIX: Surprise Surprise

AYAME'S POV:

Walking side by side with Kakashi down the busy Konoha street, I blushed a couple shades of red. I wasn't used to having a boyfriend, or whatever my relationship with Kakashi was at the moment. We still haven't told our friends that we liked each other, we didn't want things to become awkward. When Asuma and Kurenai first started becoming public with their relationship, Anko teased them for almost a month. We didn't want the same thing to happen to us.

"So how about you come over to my place tonight?" Kakashi asked casually as he walked me to the medical building, "I guess I could cook something for dinner." He had picked me up at my apartment earlier this morning, and insisted on walking me to work.

"MOVE OUT THE WAY!" We heard someone yell behind us, "KAKASHI, I HAVE SOME NEWS FOR YOU!"

Kakashi and I both turned around to see Kotetsu, one of the guards of Konoha's gates, pushing people out of the way. Finally he caught up to where Kakashi and I stood, in front of the medical building.

"Kakashi, I uh-" He placed his hand on Kakashi's shoulder, trying to catch his breath, "I have some-," Deep breath, "News," Another deep breath, "For you."

Kakashi crossed his arms impatiently, "Well, what is it? Spit it out Kotetsu!"

I was also becoming impatient, the worst cases scenario were coming to my head. What if someone passed away, or what if Kakashi lost his job?

"It's Rin!" Kotestu hurried, "She's back Kakashi! And she's been asking for you!"

My eyes widened in shock, as did Kakashi's. "Rin...?" Kakashi mumbled to himself and looked down. The last time Kakashi had seen Rin was ten years ago, she had been kidnapped during the same mission that Obito died in.

What did this mean now? Was Kakashi going to run off to his long lost childhood friend who used to be in love with him?

"Well, where is she?" Kakashi asked Kotetsu in another rushed, impatient tone.

"She's in the Hokage's office," Kotetsu answered, "And he wants Ayame to come to his office too, for some reason."

"Thank Kotetsu," Kakashi dismissed, and grabbed my hand roughly, dragging me toward the Hokage's building.

On the way over, Kakashi didn't speak a word to me, he was thinking hard about something. Feeling a numb, stiffness in my chest, I dreaded going into the Hokage's office. I really didn't want to see Rin again. I hated her ten years ago, and I'm pretty sure I'll hate her even more now. And what did Kotetsu mean when he said that she'd been 'asking for Kakashi'?

Without even knocking first, Kakashi threw open the Hokage's office door. Spotting Rin in front of the Hokage's desk, he ran to her and enveloped her into a tight hug. I stood in the back of the room, standing awkwardly still.

Iruka was also in the room, sitting in a chair by the Hokage's desk. I lifted my hand and waved uncomfortably at him, and he did the same.

Finally, they broke apart, and I had a better view of this 'Rin' girl.

She was a little taller than I was, with reddish brown hair that reached her shoulder's, and had a more muscular body than I did. She was wearing a purple tank top that showed off her toned body. Next to her, I felt scrawny and skinny.

"Rin," Kakashi spoke, still looking at the kidnapped girl, "Where were you? What happened...? I tried looking for you that day, but then Obito..."

Rin smiled back up to Kakashi, "It's okay, Kakashi, I'll explain everything to you."

"But for now, I shall explain what's happening for the next few days," the old Hokage spoke, folding his hands together. The room fell silent as the Hokage cleared his throat to speak again, "Kakashi and his team 7 are due for a mission tonight, and will be gone for a few days. I believe it's a C ranked mission to escort a bridge builder back home."

Kakashi nodded his head, "Yes Hokage-sama,"

"And Ayame," The Hokage turned to face me, "Since Sasuke will be gone for a couple days on a mission, I thought it would be a good idea for Rin to stay in your apartment. Just until she could find a place of her own."

"Of course Hokage-sama," I answered, Rin turned around a smiled at me, and I did the best to hide my anger and smiled back.

* * *

"Did you pack clean underwear, your toothbrush, enough food, and clothes?"

"Yes, 'mother'," Sasuke answered in a monotone, with his arms crossed over his chest, "I have to go now," He spoke, and joined Sakura and Naruto in front of the gates of Konoha.

I stood a few feet away from the gates, waiting to say goodbye to Kakashi, but he hadn't arrived yet.

Only a few seconds later, I heard laughing and talking behind me. Turning around, I spotted Kakashi and Rin walking together, and having a good time.

"I just wanted to walk Kakashi to the gates, and wish him a safe trip," Rin admitted, leaning up to kiss Kakashi's cheek.

"Oh how nice," I replied, "Rin, would you please give me and Kakashi a minute alone please," I asked as polite as I could. And with that I dragged Kakashi a few feet away from where Rin stood, so that she couldn't hear anything.

"You know, I've been waiting here for you," I told him, poking him in the chest, "And what was that kiss all about?"

Kakashi chuckled and scratched the back of his head nervously, "We're just friends, and we haven't seen each other in a long time."

"Then what are we, Kakashi? Are we just friends?" I asked, curiously.

He grabbed my hand and pulled it toward his chest, "Well I was hoping that we could be more than just friends."

I smiled up at him and nodded, and he engulfed me into a tight hug. When we let go, he placed a kiss on my lower cheek, dangerously close to my mouth. "I'll be back in a couple days, try not to miss me so much."

"I'll try," I answered, as he winked at me before walking away to catch up with the rest of his team.

* * *

**[A/N]: So what did you guys think? Do you trust this "Rin" girl? Well I have lots of surprising chapters coming up for you guys!**

**Oh, and I have a new poll on my profile, so pleeease cast your vote!**

**XOXO**

**I really want some reviews before I write my next chapter :D  
**


	26. Sleepover, Without The Sleeping

CHAPTER TWENTY SEVEN: Sleepover, without the sleeping

3rd Person POV:

Two days had passed, and Ayame had just about enough of Rin. She wouldn't clean up after herself, she couldn't help with the dishes, or help cooking or anything. Rin would use up all the hot water in the shower, and borrow Ayame's clothes without asking.

"Nori, I can't stand her anymore!" Ayame grunted, as her best friend Nori sat around in her bedroom. Rin was currently taking another hot shower on the other side of the apartment, so there was no way of her listening to their conversation.

Nori shrugged, "But she's always nice to everyone, I don't see what the problem is. She only seems to tick YOU off. Maybe your just feeling a little cautious because of Kakashi."

The two heard the bathroom door open, and the sound of Rin humming to herself as she went to Sasuke's room to get dressed.

"Nori, you don't know what it's like when you leave! She has a horrible attitude and never cleans up after herself, and I do not feel cautious because of Kakashi!" Ayame whispered rushing, "I bet if we go to the bathroom right now, her dirty towel and dirty clothes will be on the floor, waiting for me to clean it up!"

"Alright fine, let's go check," Nori agreed, and got up lazily from the bed.

"Okay, we don't want her too hear us, so we have to act like ninjas," Ayame explained, opening the door of her bedroom.

"Um, Ayame?"

"Yeah?"

"We are ninjas!" Nori exclaimed.

"Oh yeah... I forgot," Ayame laughed.

Walking toward the bathroom quietly, Ayame and Nori passed by Sasuke's door and heard more humming.

When Ayame opened the bathroom door, she was relieved to see clothes scattered on the floor. "You see!" Ayame whispered loud enough for Nori to hear, "She left her dirty clothes here for me to clean!"

"You're right Ayame!" Nori exclaimed, holding her pregnant belly, "This girl has got to go. Maybe I'll sleepover tonight... so you won't have to deal with her alone."

Ayame smiled at her best friend, "Thank you Nori!"

"Hey girls what's going on?"

Nori and Ayame jumped up, frightened of the voice from behind them. They turned around to see Rin drying her hair with a towel.

"Oh nothing... we were just planning a little sleepover tonight in the living room. Since it's your last night here and all," Ayame explained sweetly.

"Aw, how nice," Rin smiled, and handed her towel to Ayame, "Can you wash this towel for me? Thanks."

As Rin walked away, Ayame's eye twitched and she felt the urge to attack her from behind.

* * *

_Ding Dong..._

"Oh that must be Nori!" Ayame exclaimed, getting up to answer the door.

Rin sat in the living room, filing her nails, "Yeah whatever."

Opening the door, Ayame was surprised to see more than one girl. She expected to just see Nori on the other side of the door, but instead she was greeted by two other girls.

Ayame held the door open as Nori, Anko, and Kurenai walked into the living room. "Hey Rin," they all greeted, and Rin waved, while still filing her nails.

"I brought some rice cakes," Kurenai announced, holding up a covered plate, "They're supposed to be good for the baby," She smiled down at Nori's pregnant belly.

"And I brought some dango and saki," Anko announced, "Which is not good for the baby!"

We all laughed and sat around in the living room. "Anko, remember the last time we drank saki together?"

"Oh... right," Anko said, remembering the night of her birthday, "It's a good thing I don't have to walk home tonight."

* * *

"Okay so, that's the last of the saki," Anko proclaimed an hour or two later. She shook the bottle just to hear the emptiness, followed by a sigh from Rin.

"Just when I thought this little party was getting exciting," Rin added sarcastically, "Why don't we do something a little more exciting?" She grabbed the empty bottle from Anko's hand and placed it onto the table, "Let's play truth or dare."

"Uh sure, sounds like fun," Kurenai spoke in low tone.

"I'll go first," Nori smiled and took a hold of the bottle.

As Nori spun the bottle, Ayame prayed that it would land on Rin. There were a few questions that she would love to ask her...

Ayame wasn't paying attention to the bottle, she was too busy eyeing Rin. There was just something that she did not like about that girl. Before she knew it, the bottle was starting to slow down on the table. And everyone watched as it landed on Rin.

"Yes!" Ayame mumbled under her breath.

"Okay Rin," Nori started, "Choose wisely, Truth or Dare?"

After contemplating it in her head for a while, Rin spoke out loud and smiled sneeringly, "Truth."

Nori winked towards Ayame before asking the question, "So Rin, since your back in town, is there anything going on between you and Kakashi?"

Everyone watched as Rin's smile grew wider, "Well... nothing's happened yet, considering I only got to see him for a couple hours. But when he gets back from his mission, he'll be all mine..."

"Excuse me?" Ayame jumped up from her seat, "You know, I put up with you, I clean up after you and I deal with your crap. But I will not sit here while you talk about MY Kakashi like that!"

Rin stood up from her seat slowly, "Well sorry for feeling like a guest here! Was it my fault that I was kidnapped ten years ago? And since when was he YOUR Kakashi?"

Ayame placed her hands on her hips and stepped closer, "You better believe he's MY Kakashi, and he has been for the past three years! I'm not gonna let some piece of trash just walk into town, thinking that she owns everything. You might have everyone else fooled, but I can assure you that I am not that gullible."

"Guys, GUYS! Stop please!" Nori yelled loudly, holding her big belly, "I think it's time guys! I THINK THE BABY'S COMING NOW!"

Frozen in spot, Ayame didn't know what to do at first. Then she remembered that she works in the medical building. "Okay, we have to get you to the medical building now!" Ayame shouted, "Kurenai, I need you to find Hitoshi and get him to the medical building. Anko, help me get Nori up!"

* * *

**[A/N]: I hope everyone has enjoyed this chapter :D**

**Ayame was about to get all fiesty to stick up for her man :-p**

**Do you guys think I should write in 3rd person POV? Or in Ayame's POV? Or should I just keep switching back and forth?**

**Let me know what you thinkkk, send reviews! **

**XOXO :-*  
**


	27. Hime

**CHAPTER TWENTY EIGHT: Hime**

"Miss Uchiha?" I heard a soft soothing voice from behind me, and turned to see a medical nin, "Your friend just had a beautiful baby girl, and you are now allowed to go in a see them."

My heart skipped a beat when she mentioned the sex of the baby. She'll be like a little princess, "Arigato."

Excited, I walked into the room to spot Nori first, laying on the bed, holding her baby in her arms. Then I noticed Hitoshi sitting next to her, looking tired, but very happy. The tiny infant was wrapped in a light pink blanket, with a small pacifier in her mouth.

"Ayame, I want you to meet Hime," Nori spoke, "Her name means-"

"-Princess," I cut her off, and smiled at the little baby, "Can I hold her?"

Nori smiled, "Of course," and she handed the baby over to me.

The little child was sleeping in my arms, and her breath flowed slowly, but regularly. She had a little spot of blonde hair at the top of her head, that resembled her mothers'.

"She is definitely a very beautiful princess," I declared, holding Hime as she napped in my arms. Nothing seemed more beautiful at this moment. Hime changed something in my heart, something that I couldn't see before. She made me see how valuable life was, and how beautiful it could be. I never wanted this baby to ever get hurt in her life. I guess I never truly realized how beautiful the cycle of life can be, until this moment, holding this baby in my arms.

* * *

The hospital room got a little crowded when Nori and Hitoshi's parents arrived, so I decided to leave for a while. Walking out of the health facility, I felt a cool breeze hit my face as well as the beam of the morning sun. I realized that I just had spent the whole night at the hospital.

"Konohamaru, you will never guess the AMAZING mission we were just on!" A voice came from behind me, "This guy Zabuza did some cool water jutsu that even Kakashi-sensei couldn't handle! Sasuke and I had to work together to save him!"

I whipped around to see Naruto, Sakura, and Sasuke talking to Konohamaru. "Hey guys, when did you get back from your mission?"

"Hi Ayame," Sakura smiled wearily up at me, "We just got back a couple minutes ago." Her pink hair looked like a mess, as she tried to flatten the prying frizz down.

I furrowed my eyebrows in concern, "Are you guys okay? How was the mission?"

"We're fine," Sakura answered, "But I think I'm going home so I can get some rest. I'll see you guys later."

After Sakura left, Naruto kept jumping around and talking to Konohamaru. Sasuke and Sakura looked so tired, but Naruto looked as if he had a lot of energy left in him. I smiled at the blonde haired kid and eventually turned to face the younger Uchiha. "It was supposed to be a C-ranked mission, but it turned out to be A-ranked," Sasuke explained, "Now if you don't mind, I'm going home. I haven't slept in three days."

Watching Sasuke leave, I turned to where Naruto and Konohamaru were talking. "Hey Naruto, where's Kakashi?" I asked.

Naruto smiled broadly, "He's in the Hokage's office, reporting our return! Believe it!"

Laughing, I thanked Naruto and made my way to the Hokage's building.

* * *

I stayed outside, and leaned against the wall of the building, waiting for Kakashi to come out.

And that's when _she_ passed by.

"Oh, don't tell me that you're waiting for your "boyfriend" Kakashi?" Rin teased, "I know you lied, he's not really your boyfriend. I asked around and everyone said you're just friends."

My hands reached my hips and I leaned closer to the redheaded dimwit, "Listen, I do not need to prove anything to you. Okay? So why don't you do us all a favor and go back from where you came from?"

She smiled tauntingly at me, "You know what I think? I think you're just threatened because Kakashi and I were always meant to be together," She turned sideways and put on a fake plastered smile, while waving to someone behind me, "Oh! Hey Kakashi!"

I turned around quickly as Kakashi walked out of the door and to where we stood. "Hey, what are you guys doing here?"

Before Rin had a chance to speak, I stood in front of her and blocked her off, "Well... I was talking to Naruto, Sasuke and Sakura and they told me how dangerous the mission turned out to be. And I was soo worried about you."

Leaning up to give Kakashi a tight hug, and winked at Rin as she smiled sinisterly. I let go of Kakashi as he smiled gratefully at me, and turned to Rin.

"Kakashi... I was just passing by to talk to the Hokage about new living arrangements. The last place I stayed at didn't treat me like a real guest," Rin smirked toward me, "I guess I'll talk to you later, Kakashi," She leaned up and kissed him on the cheek, and I felt steam coming out of my ears. As she walked away, she winked toward Kakashi.

"Ugh she makes me so angry, stupid baka!" I muttered under my breath as my cheeks turned a dark shade of red, due to my rage.

"What?" Kakashi asked.

"Oh it's nothing," I smiled, not wanting Kakashi to know about the little feud between Rin and I, "How 'bout we go somewhere quiet, and you could tell me all about the mission?"

* * *

"His name was Momochi Zabuza, and he was a missing-nin from Kirigakure. He also trained this kid named Haku as his 'ultimate' weapon or something," Kakashi explained, as we sat upon the roof of a building, with our feet dangling over the city.

I pondered my brain for a moment, "I think I've heard of him before. They used to call him the Demon of the Mist."

Kakashi looked down at his lap, then looked back up at me, and took a hold of my hand. "You know Ayame, while I was out on that mission, the only thing that was on my mind was you. I was thinking about how stubborn you are sometimes, and how jealous you get sometimes, and how much of a baka you could be. But most of all, I was thinking about how much it would hurt if I died and left you all alone in this world. I wouldn't be there to protect, or to make you happy."

"Oh, Kakashi..."

"I also kept thinking that I forgot to give you something before I left," Kakashi explained.

I smiled at him, "And what's that?"

He smiled, then leaned down and kissed me on the lips, with the mask between us. Keeping my eyes closed, I broke away from the kiss, and felt his face for the mask, and pulled it down just enough for his mouth to be exposed.

And this time I kissed him back, the right way.

* * *

**[A/N]: Awww how sweet :-***

**It took me about two days to finish this chapter, because I kept getting stuck at so many parts.**

**I posted some pictures on my profile of Kakashi & Ayame, so check them out and tell me what you think!**

**And for those of you who haven't voted in my poll, PLEASE DO SO :D**

**XOXO, Kelly.**

**REVIEW!  
**


	28. Rin's Dark Past

Chapter Twenty Nine: **RIN'S DARK PAST**

**Third Person POV :**

As the sun started setting, the gray-haired ninja, and his former student sat upon the highest building in Konoha. Kakashi recited everything that had happened during the mission against Zabuza. He hadn't had a good thrill like that in a while. Every since he became a sensei, it's all been _D-ranked_ missions.

He felt like he could tell Ayame anything, and she wouldn't judge him one bit. Maybe he could start to forget about all the loved ones he's lost, because that was the only thing keeping him back from being with her. He didn't want to lose anyone anymore, he was tired of his friends and family dying in his hands.

Kakashi smiled, then leaned down and kissed Ayame on the lips, leaving the dark navy blue mask between them. Keeping her eyes closed, Ayame broke away from the kiss, reached for the mask, and pulled it down just enough for his mouth to be exposed.

And this time she kissed him back, the right way. The way she had wanted to kiss him all along, but never had the guts to. The gray haired ninja didn't seem to mind, as he drew her body closer to him.

As the two love birds sat on the top of the highest building in Konoha, they were so wrapped up with each other, that they had failed to realize that someone had been spying on them all this time. Someone had been lurking in the shadows, climbing in the trees, and had stopped to watch the scene displayed before her.

Rin hadn't meant to watch them the entire time, she was just fascinated at the fact that they really did like each other. Kakashi truly did have feelings for her, and maybe Ayame hadn't been lying all along. Rin was finally able to realize that she no longer had a place in their world, because they now had each other. And she craved someone like that in her life, someone that loved her as much as she loved them.

Sitting upon the Hokage's Monument, right on top of the second Hokage's head, Rin watched over the busy city. As darkness started engulfing around her, the kunoichi predicted that it was getting late, and if she wanted to leave Konoha tonight, she would have to do it soon.

She didn't want to deal with any "good-byes" or "farewells" from the old friends that she reunited with, she wasn't good with that type of stuff. Instead, she figured she could just slip out of town, under the moonlight. Maybe tomorrow everyone would wake up and find the world a better place... without her.

But she was rooted in her spot, and her body wouldn't budge. A few tears cascaded down her face, and she was too tiresome to reach her hand out to wipe them.

Each tear felt like a million weights lifted off her back, something she'd been wanting to get rid of. Then suddenly, she felt them, standing behind her. Her eyes had widened, not from fear, but from shock.

"It was foolish for you to come back here Rin."

Standing up slowly, Rin already knew who she was about to face, and wasn't surprised at all when she spotted Orochimaru, accompanied by Kabuto, a few meters away from her. They were both standing upon the rocky monument, that resembled a canyon from where they stood.

Gritting her teeth angrily, Rin crossed her arms over her chest, "What do you want Orochimaru? I left you for a reason."

"How dare you speak to me like that? After I took you in when you had no where to go, when you lost your memory and begged me for help," Orochimaru scorned, as he squinted his eyes in skepticism.

Rin balled her fists and stepped forward a little, "After I regained my memory, I remembered who you really were, and all those people that you killed."

Orochimaru laughed sarcastically, "Well if you're done with your little hissy fit, I'd like to explain your new mission." His skin was a grayish color and his hair had gotten longer from the last time she's seen him. But his eyes... his glaring eyes were still the same threatening olive green that gave her shivers down her back. Standing up straight and tall, the reddish brown haired girl showed no fear, but only confidence.

Rin squinted her eyes and jerked her head to the side, "Don't you get it? I'm done serving for you! I'm done doing your dirty work," As she picked up her bag from the ground, she turned her back on them, "I'm leaving, for the last time. If you want something done Orochimaru, why don't you go do it yourself, instead of having everyone work as your little puppets."

As she started walking away, she didn't know how he could of gotten to her that fast, but Kabuto grabbed her arms behind her and placed a kunai to her neck. She lowered her eyes slowly in defeat, and cursed herself mentally for being so stupid. Rin could have left when she had the chance to, and now it was too late.

"Now, will you agree to do as Master Orochimaru asks?" Kabuto asked, as he placed the blade closer to her throat. All Rin let out was a whimper of fear, and Kabuto grabbed her tighter. She could now feel drops of blood dripping down her skin, as he placed the blade even closer.

* * *

**[A/N]: Sorry for the wait guysss, I've been on vacation for the summer. But I've read each and every review & message from you guys! You are tooo sweet to me! I seriously have the best readers :p I hope you guys enjoyed this chapter, and keep the reviews coming! **


	29. Shifty Shifty

**[A/N]: I hope you guys won't hate this chapter, and read the ending Author's Note for a explanation of the chapter.**

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* * *

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Chapter Thirty: **Shifty Shifty**

Ayame had spent a little extra time getting ready in the bathroom that morning. For some reason her long dark, pin straight hair was not cooperating and it seemed as though there were dark circles under her eyes. She found it hard to sleep last night, and was going over the recent events in her mind. After a long conversation, Kakashi had agreed last night, to finally take their relationship to the next level. She hadn't known what he meant by that now, but it made so much more sense in the nighttime when she intoxicated by love.

Walking out of the bathroom, Ayame passed by Sasuke's empty room and entered the living room where there were three people seated. Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto were lounging in the sitting room and looked up at Ayame as she walked in.

"Ayame, what did you do to my sensei?" Sasuke asked, his mouth in the shape of a straight line. Ayame gave him a confused look and raised her eyebrows at him. His navy blue shirt was starting the fit him a little snug after all the muscles he attained during the past few months. His once lanky body was becoming more lean due to the intensive training with his team.

Sakura continued, "We had an extra training this morning, and he actually came early! Not even on time... early! He was waiting there before we even showed up. Then, during the training, he didn't open his little perverted book. Not even once!"

The corners of Ayame's mouth turned up as she smiled brightly to herself. "Well... what makes you think it has anything to do with me?," she raised her eyebrows once again to the preteens.

Naruto had gotten up and started raiding the refrigerator in the kitchen. Ayame was already used to this, since Sasuke had been bringing his friends home to hang out for the past few days. She didn't want to complain, since Sasuke didn't make much friends growing up. Ayame knew Sasuke, and she knew that he was afraid of getting close to people again.

After finding a stash of Ramen noodles at the back of the fridge, Naruto spoke up with a set of chopsticks in his hand, "How dumb do you think we are? We all know you and Kakashi-sensei have been canoodling."

Ayame rolled her eyes at the blonde haired ninja as he stuffed a lump full of noodles into his mouth. She had blushed a little at Naruto's comment but tried her best to act normal. "Well if you kids'll excuse me, I have to get to work. Be good and don't burn down the house."

As Ayame walked out of the building she heard following footsteps from behind her. She turned slightly to see a pink haired girl running up to her. "Wait up Ayame, I wanted to ask you something," Ayame exasperated.

She had finally caught up with Ayame, "What's up Sakura?"

Sakura blushed a little, "Well I was wondering if I could ask you for some advice..? Like woman to woman? Well more like Woman to girl?"

Ayame chuckled at Sakura's nervousness, but nodded in agreement. She waited as Sakura continued, "Okay... so I like this boy, and I spend quite a lot of time with him everyday... but I still feel so invisible to him. Do you think there is something wrong with me?"

Smiling brightly at the young girl, Ayame knew how she felt, "Sakura, you are an amazing girl, and I'm sure that any guy could notice that. Some guys are just not as bright as us girls... it may take some time for them to realize these things."

The young girl nodded and reached to give Ayame a tight hug, "Thanks Ayame, you're like the big sister I never had."

"You're welcome Sakura, and don't worry, I'm sure Sasuke will come to his senses," Ayame winked at her, and patted her head. She left the blushing girl, and made her way to work, feeling accomplished.

But once again, she was stopped on her way to the medical building, where she was sure she was already late.

Someone had grabbed her wrist and held her back, she looked over at the person and noticed the familiar reddish brown hair. She pulled her arm away and glowered at the girl from head to toe. "Can I help you Rin?"

Rin was fidgeting in her spot, and kept stuttering, "L-L-Listen Aya-Ayame... I just w-wanted to tell you that, I-I'm okay with you and Kakashi being together. I-I was stubborn before... But n-now I can tell that you make him happy."

Raising one eyebrow at her, Ayame was not believing the crap coming out of Rin's mouth. But then Ayame got a closer look at the girl, and noticed a fresh cut on the side of Rin's throat, it looked as if it just happened moments ago. And her eyes... they were dark and strained, and looked sleepy.

"Uh, thanks I guess," Ayame returned a smile, "Are you okay Rin? You look kind of sick... you should stop by the medical building, i'm sure they can squeeze an appointmen-"

"I-I'm fine," she interrupted, but her eyes seemed shifty and her palms looked sweaty. "I have to go," she stated suddenly, and walked in the opposite direction.

She left Ayame standing there, feeling just as confused as she looked.

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**[A/N]: **

**Okay so first of all, sorry for the super long wait.**

**Second of all, thank you for the reviewssss!**

**Third of all, I just wanna explain some topics from this chapter. I know most of you don't like Rin, and I didn't either when I first introduced her into the story, but you're going to see a different side of her now that she's under Orochimaru's control. **

**Im very, truly sorry that I didn't put any of Kakashi's sexy yummy goodness in this chapter, but I assure you that he WILL be in the next one.**

**xoxo Kellyyy  
**


	30. The Next Level

**[A/N]: Sorry for taking so long to reply, but I'm working on some summer assignments. School starts next Wednesday! And it'll be my last year at high school :( also, my birthday is on September 7****th****!**

**I'll be turning SEVENTEEN! **

**I hope you all enjoy this chapter, it's in Ayame's point of view, so you'll get to see what goes on in her head :D**

**

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Chapter Thirty One: **THE NEXT LEVEL  
**

Papers, notes, pens, scrolls, ink and other miscellaneous items scattered around the messy desk as I tried to focus on the work in front of me. The medical nin's gave me a form to fill out with the appointments for the rest of the week, and it was hard to keep track of things when my mind was centered on something entirely different. I haven't seen Hatake Kakashi in over two days, and it was literally killing me inside. I understood that he was busy training his genin for the chuunin exams... but I missed him like crazy.

The last time we had seen each other was the night after he came from the Zabuza mission. We had kissed that night... like never before. It was a special moment that we shared and I knew he felt the same way I did. He also mentioned that he wanted to take our relationship to the next level.

But what did that mean? I was his former student... and when we discovered our feelings for each other... things got a little awkward. But after it all, I would say our relationship is in a good place. We never went as far as kissing, so what did Kakashi really mean when he wanted to take things to the next level?

Finally giving up, I glanced toward the clock and noticed that it was already time for me to leave. Grabbing my belongings, I didn't waste another minute before leaving.

The moon was peaking through some clouds overhead as I pulled my jacket closer to my body. It was chilly during the nights, and the walking home alone wasn't my favorite thing to do.

Although, I did love the nighttime, since the sun was gone and the moon was out. The moon provides more water in the air, and it made water jutsus easier.

I passed by Ichiraku Ramen, and did a double take at the person who leaned against the outside wall. The corners of my mouth turned up, and a reddish flush took over my cheeks.

"I wondered if you'd stop and recognize me," Kakashi spoke, unfolding his arms and walking toward me. I smiled widely at him and met him halfway. His one visible eye looked lazy, and his light gray hair was a mess at the top of his head.

I grinned, "How could I not recognize you? I was just thinking about you..."

"Happy thoughts, I hope," Kakashi joked and scratched the back of his head, as usual. He looked the same since the last time I seen him, and I wanted him to stay that way forever.

Slowly, I raised an eyebrow at him, but kept smiling, "Walk me home?"

He nodded, agreeing, and we both walked down the lonely path.

I stood at his side, not sure of how close I should be to him. I wouldn't want to invade his space or anything, but then again, I wanted to be closer to him. I wanted to be close enough to inhale his certain scent, or hear his heartbeat.

As a cool wind floated by, I rubbed my arms to keep myself warm, and looked up at him, smiling again. "Are you cold?" he asked, not even waiting for an answer before wrapping an arm around my shoulder.

"S-Sure," I stuttered, surprised. My cheeks must have been a deep red by now, so I decided to change the subject to something else, "So, the first part of the chuunin exams are tomorrow morning, right?"

Kakashi nodded, "I have full faith in Team 7, and I know they'll try their best. That's why I entered them in the exams for this year. Because I know they'll have each other... no matter how much they deny it, they need each other."

Agreeing, I added, "He'll never admit it, but I think Sasuke's starting to realize that Naruto and Sakura are his true friends."

Kakashi didn't reply, but instead he nodded, and stood silent. And I liked that about him. I liked that we could just be silent with each other, but we would still know whats on each others' minds.

"You know Ayame... it's going to be kind of lonely with Sasuke gone during the second part of the cuunin exams. Who knows how long they'll be in the Forest of Death..." He complained, and I looked up at him with big brown eyes. I could tell that he smiled through his mask, as his visible eye created an arch. Is this what he meant by taking our relationship to the next level? He wanted to be alone with me..?

I titled my head to the side as we approached my apartment, and was about to say something before I noticed something moving in the bushes. Stopping in my tracks, I stared once more at the bush and quirked my eyebrow.

"Are you oka-"

"Shh," I cut Kakashi off and placed a finger to his lips to silence him. I kept my gaze on the bush and waited for another movement, but it never came. Slowly, I walked toward the spot, curious to what it was.

I lived in the city part of Konoha, where there weren't much squirrels, raccoons, or any other kinds of critters walking around.

Looking back at Kakashi, I noticed that he had a worried look on his face. As if I was imagining this whole scene, as if I was... crazy. "Maybe I should stay with you tonight... you look stressed."

Kakashi... staying with me for the night..? I nodded slowly and cautiously, not really knowing what I got myself into.

As I entered the apartment, Kakashi trailed along behind me and followed me into the kitchen. I could tell that Sasuke had already ate dinner, by noticing the dirty dishes in the sink. "You can have a seat," I suggested, "I'm just going to tell Sasuke goodnight."

Sasuke's room was the first in the hallway, right across from the bathroom. I knocked softly on the wooden door, not wanting to wake him up if he was already sleeping. When I didn't hear a response, I opened the door cautiously to see Sasuke laying on his bed with a few scrolls scattered around him.

"Hey kiddo," I remarked, walking further into his freakishly neat bedroom. "I just wanted to say good night, and good luck on your first Chuunin exam tomorrow. I know you'll do great."

Sasuke looked over to me, while rolling up the scroll in his hand, "Thanks," he mumbled. I smiled at his tired face and his tired eyes, which resembled his older brother in so many ways.

Patting his knee, I smiled once more before closing the door behind me.

**Kakashi's POV  
**

As Ayame walked back into the kitchen from seeing Sasuke, I noticed the relaxed but tired look on her face. "Why don't I take you to your bed?" I

asked, rubbing her slender shoulders from behind as she washed the dishes. She sighed longingly, but nodded her head eventually.

Drying her hands with a kitchen towel, Ayame allowed me to take her into the direction of her bedroom. As we entered the room, I closed the door behind us and leaned against the window frame.

The only light that was visible in the room was the moonshine peeking through the curtains, and a dimmed lamp on the corner table. Flashbacks came to my mind from the first time I been in her room, and a small chuckle left my mouth as I remembered the details.

"Why are you laughing?" Ayame inquired, tying her long hair up in a messy bun with a navy blue ribbon. I watched as a few hairs came out of the bun and framed her pale face. Leaning over, I brushed a few hairs out of her eyes, and kept my hand resting on her cheek. She blushed deeply and covered her hand over mine.

I watched as her brown eyes fluttered closed as she tippy toed up to me, and kissed me softly through the mask. I pulled my mask down in a millisecond, and pulled her closer to me, and kissed her roughly. She kissed me back with just as much enthusiasm and her hands snaked their way around my neck.

I held her there, for as long as I could, because I didn't want this moment to end. Ever.


End file.
